The Delta Quadrant Book 1 Special Edition
by QuantumParadox
Summary: The Federation ventures into the Delta Quadrant once again, but as with all new ventures, danger lurks nearly everywhere...


**The Delta Quadrant Trilogy**

**Book 1**

This document, and all derivative works, are Copyrighted 2005 by Jason Troiano. All rights reserved.

**Chapter 1**

"Congratulations on your promotion, Fleet Admiral Maxwell."

"Thank you Admiral Picard."

The newly minted Admiral James Maxwell stood up and reached out his hand. The elder Admiral Picard reached back and they shook hands firmly.

"How does it feel to be one of the youngest flag officers in Starfleet?" Picard asked.

"To be honest, I'm a little bit nervous. I'm happy that I've been chosen for this honor, but I know how much work will be required of me," Maxwell replied.

"I know how you feel Mr. Maxwell, I remember how grueling it was on me when I was promoted to the rank of Admiral, however you'll get used to it, and eventually realize that the advantages of being an Admiral vastly outweigh the disadvantages."

"Well you have been an Admiral for longer than I have, so I suppose you know better than I do. Now what is my first assignment?" Maxwell said questioningly.

"Well, now that you have level twelve clearance, I can let you in on a little secret." Picard leaned forward across his deck with the look of a conspirator on his face. "The Federation is preparing to dispatch a colonization fleet to the Delta Quadrant!"

Maxwell could barely contain his surprise. "The Delta Quadrant?"

"Yes Admiral Maxwell. I don't know if you are aware, but the Federation has been working on Transwarp technology over the past several years. Starfleet Command believes the systems are ready for full scale testing."

James leaned forward. "What sort of scale are we talking about?"

"The transwarp drive systems will be deployed on a small number of starships. These ships will travel to a system in the Delta Quadrant that we have identified as the best colonization location from the Starship _Voyager's_ databanks. The system, which we have named Serris, is not very deep inside the Delta Quadrant, which will allow for easier emergency transportation."

"Forgive me Admiral, but even with the new technology will it not take several days for a starship to reach the system? Suppose we need emergency supplies. Several days could be the difference between our destruction and our survival." Maxwell responded.

"You are quite right Admiral. That is why you will be carrying the equipment and specialists needed to build a transwarp gate." Picard responded with a smile.

"A transwarp gate? You mean we'll be…."

"Admiral," Picard said as he stood up, "let's take a little ride."

With a brilliant flash, the _USS Enterprise-E_ dropped out of warp half a light year away from Earth. James Maxwell looked out the window of the conference lounge with a look of awe on his face.

"Impressive, isn't it?" Picard said as he sat down at the conference table with a cup of Earl Grey tea. "Would you care for a drink?"

"No thank you Admiral." Maxwell replied. "This gate is truly magnificent. I now understand why ships weren't allowed in this sector. I had my suspicions that a 'natural phenomenon' wasn't why we couldn't travel through here."

"I always admired your intuition Admiral. It's true; Starfleet ordered this sector closed so that they could establish the transwarp gate in secrecy."

"A wise precaution." Maxwell replied.

"Indeed. Construction of the gate was completed about a month ago. Now, all we need to conduct the final testing of our designs is another gate. We had originally planned to build one near Qu'nos so that we could get into Klingon space quickly. However, Admiral Janeway suggested that we could establish a new colony in the Delta Quadrant and build a gate there."

"That's actually a good idea. I read over some of Janeway's reports back when _Voyager_ made it back, and many of the uninhabited systems there contained resources that would be beneficial to the Federation."

"We thought as you did. Starfleet discussed the plans with the Klingons, who also believed it to be a good plan."

"The Klingons are going with us?" Maxwell asked, surprised.

"Yes, We felt it wiser to involve them so that they wouldn't think we were plotting against them or anything. You know how the Klingons are."

"Indeed I do. On that subject, what about the Romulans? They're even more paranoid than the Klingons about stuff like this. They'd probably see our expedition as some sort of prelude to war."

"Starfleet has chosen not to inform them of this. They'll undoubtedly learn of it soon. We can just hope that they will keep their paranoia in check when they find out."

"Very well. What's our timetable?" Maxwell asked.

"Well, right now, Starfleet is working on outfitting the expedition fleet with transwarp drives. Your flagship is also being prepared for the trip." Picard replied.

"My flagship sir?"

"Oh yes, I nearly forgot." Picard pulled out a padd and slid it along the table. Maxwell picked it up and began to read. "She's the latest Akira Class starship. Right now she's being outfitted with weapons, engines, shields, and a prototype ablative armor generator system. Transwarp drive is also being added of course."

Maxwell read through the padd and smiled as he read the last paragraph.

"Yes I pulled a few strings and managed to get the name you wanted for the ship."

Maxwell set down the padd. "Thank you Admiral. The _Highwind_ and I owe you one."

"Well then, the refitting of the fleet will be completed in about two weeks. I will have the specifics of your mission after that." Picard said as he stood up.

"All right Admiral. I think I'll use the next two weeks to read up on the Delta Quadrant, and to get my affairs in order before I depart."

The two men stood up and walked to the bridge of the _Enterprise_. "Ensign Callaway, set a course for Earth, Warp five. Inform Spacedock that we will be docking when we arrive."

"Yes sir."

"So Admiral Maxwell, I trust this mission is to your liking?" Picard said as he sat in the command chair.

"Yes Admiral, it is. I look forward to it." Maxwell said as he sat down next to him.

**Chapter 2**

"Captain, we're receiving a transmission from Starfleet. They wish to speak to you personally."

Captain Hawking stood up with a frown. "Very well, relay it to my ready room." He walked quickly and entered his spacious ready room. Sitting down at his desk, he tapped the controls on the small screen there. Moments later, the Federation symbol was replaced with an image.

"John Hawking!" the person on the screen said with a smile.

"Well well, if it isn't James Maxwell," Hawking replied, laughing. "Nice to know you're still in Starfleet. Rumors were flying that you disappeared or retired or some such."

"I'm too young to retire," Maxwell replied. "Actually I did disappear for a while, but for good reason."

"Oh really? What reason would that be?"

Maxwell stepped back from the screen a little, so Hawking was able to clearly see the rank insignia on his collar. "Congratulations on your promotion, _Admiral_ Maxwell. I figured that would happen eventually given how well you commanded your fighter squadrons during the Dominion war."

"You people all treat me like I'm some sort of brilliant strategist," Maxwell said smiling, "I'm just here to command ships, not become the next James Kirk or Jean Luc Picard. I'm just a fighter pilot at heart you know."

"Of course you are," Hawking said sarcastically before laughing again. "So, did you call me just to gloat, or were there other reasons?" he asked.

"Actually, there were other reasons. I'm putting together a task force for a special mission that we're preparing, and I was wondering whether your crew and yourself would be willing to be a part of it."

"A special mission? What does it entail?"

"I don't want to explain over subspace. You stopped off at starbase two twelve yesterday for supplies, did you not?" Maxwell asked.

"Yes we did."

"Then you'll find a small briefing on the mission in your main computer. The filename is Delta Objective One."

Hawking tapped the controls on his console, bringing up the file and skimming through it. "We're going to the Delta Quadrant?" Hawking asked, unable to contain his surprise, "Why?"

"Like I said, I don't want to go into details. If you could, ask your crew whether they'd be willing to consider being a part of this mission. I need to know your answer by tomorrow at the latest."

"Well, it sounds like it will be quite an interesting mission. I'll ask my crew and I'll get back to you."

"All right. I need to go now, have a lot of work I need to do. It was nice talking to you again," Maxwell said.

"The feeling's mutual. I'll let you know what we decide. Hawking out."

The image of Admiral Maxwell was replaced once again with the Federation symbol, and John Hawking leaned back for a minute, contemplating what had been said. Though he wasn't sure exactly why the Federation was considering a mission to the other side of the galaxy, he knew it would be an interesting one regardless.

"Hawking to all senior officers," he said after tapping his comm badge, "report to my ready room in ten minutes. There's a mission we need to discuss…"

"Admiral?" a Lieutenant said outside of his office.

"Yes Lieutenant, come in," Maxwell replied.

"Sir, Spacedock reports that the _USS Adramalech_ has arrived in orbit. Captain Hawking is requesting docking permission, saying that you need him here for a mission."

Maxwell smiled, "Inform the dock master that what Hawking says is true. Please ask him to allow the vessel to dock."

"Yes sir. Also, Operations reports that they have reassigned the rest of your fleet from their current duties. The vessels are all en route now and should arrive within three days."

"Very good," Maxwell said. "Was there anything else?"

"Yes sir. Admiral Picard has requested your presence aboard Spacedock for a tour of your flagship."

Maxwell smiled. "Tell him I'll be there in twenty minutes."

"Welcome aboard your flagship Admiral Maxwell," Picard said as Maxwell stepped through the airlock.

"It's a pleasure to be here," Maxwell replied.

"Well then, shall we?" The two began walking towards a turbolift. The activity in the corridor was hectic, as crewmen ran around welding the final deck plates or working with consoles. They paused for a moment at the turbolift as two crewmen emerged with a power conduit, then they entered.

"Bridge," Picard said. The turbolift moved quickly, and moments later the two stepped out onto the bridge.

"Admiral on the bridge," someone called. Everyone who was working paused and stood at attention as Maxwell looked around with a look of awe.

"At ease," Maxwell said. The crewmen went back to their duties as Maxwell walked around, examining every station. Finally he stood by the three chairs where the command staff would sit.

"Try it out," Picard said, gesturing towards the Captain's Chair. Maxwell sat down, noting all the panels nearby. He tapped a few buttons, and to his surprise a hidden panel slipped open next to the chair. "That's a hidden weapons locker," Picard said. "It can hold a hand phaser and a single phaser rifle."

"Good to know I'll have one handy," Maxwell said. He sat in the chair for a few more moments before Picard spoke.

"Well, lets not get too comfortable, there's more to the ship than just the bridge," Picard said with a smile. Maxwell stood up and then they walked to the turbolift.

The tour went from sickbay, to the various science labs, to engineering. Finally, the two officers descended to the massive shuttle bay on the lower decks. The bay was huge. It ran the length of the ship and was two decks tall. Several type twelve shuttles and a single runabout were parked in various places in the bay. Maxwell looked up and saw the massive racks that would hold a full compliment of tactical fighters.

"At the moment, fighters are in critically short supply. You'll have to begin the mission without them. Once the gate is constructed, we should have a full supply of fighters and the pilots to go with them. We will shuttle them out to you then," Picard said.

"All right, I'm sure we'll be able to manage without them," Maxwell said. "I must say I am truly impressed with this ship. I look forward to commanding it."

"I knew you would," Picard said. "The _Highwind_ will serve you well."

"I'm sure it will," Maxwell said. "And while I'm here…" He strolled quickly down the length of the bay. Once he arrived at the bow of the ship, he tapped a control panel there. With a hiss, a forcefield sprang into existence. Moments later, with a warning alarm, the massive bay doors began to open. Maxwell stood back and looked out into the massive docking bay of the starbase. "Perfect timing," Maxwell said as Picard walked up next to him. They both watched as the _Adramalech_ glided by, preparing for docking. "Thank you for the tour Admiral," Maxwell said as he watched the _Adramalech_ near its mooring point.

"It was my pleasure Mr. Maxwell," Picard replied. "I must get going now though, and I'm sure you have a lot of work left to do."

"Indeed. Well thank you again. I'll be able to find my way off the ship." Picard nodded and then strolled off. Maxwell stood for a few more moments then tapped the panel again. The bay doors began to close and Maxwell walked off towards the turbolift.

Chapter 3 

Two weeks later, a Federation Fleet consisting of six starships left Earth. The ships left the Sol system and headed for a sector near the Klingon Border. Admiral Maxwell sat in the command chair of the _USS Highwind_, looking at one of his chair's panels. The panel contained the listing of the starships currently under his command.

He scrolled down the list. There was the _Highwind_ of course, an Akira Class starship. A ship designed specifically for combat, the _Highwind_ carried phaser arrays, multiphasic shields, a massive fighter bay, and fifteen torpedo launchers. Starfleet had also been gracious enough to give the ship a small supply of quantum torpedoes, expensive but packing a heavy punch. In addition, a prototype ablative armor system had been installed. This system, when activated, would replicate ablative armor plating and place it around the ship. Though this would inhibit phaser and shield functions, the armor was incredibly resilient, and could withstand even the toughest weapons fire.

Next on the list was the _USS Adramalech_, John Hawking's ship. Pretty much the biggest ship in the fleet, the _Adramalech_ was a Galaxy Class starship. Designed for scientific missions, she carried specialized sensors and scientific equipment. In addition, she also carried the massive amounts of construction materials and crew necessary for the construction of the transwarp gate in the Delta Quadrant. Not specifically designed for combat, the _Adramalech_ packed a punch, and its sheer size makes it a force to be reckoned with.

The Starship _Ticonderoga_ was the third vessel in the fleet, under the command of Captain Caesar Velkar. An older, Excelsior Class starship, the _Ticonderoga _had been specially refitted for this mission. The ship looked like it had a bunch of blisters on its hull. While they looked weird, the blisters served a very important purpose. It carried a large amount of antimatter. Knowing that the fleet wouldn't be able to have a full resupply before the gate was finished, Starfleet wisely outfitted the Ticonderoga to carry enough antimatter to keep the fleet functioning for over a year if necessary. Once the fleet arrived in the Serris system, the _Ticonderoga _will detach the pods and then use construction vehicles to link them up into one large antimatter supply station.

The fourth ship in the fleet was the _USS Monitor_. A smaller, Nova Class starship, the _Monitor_ was being sent to perform all sorts of scientific missions. Once construction of the gate has begun, the _Monitor_ will travel into nearby systems, deploy observation satellites, and gather information about the surrounding region. The _Monitor_ was under the command of Captain Ryan Nolan, a young captain who was formerly a science officer aboard the _Enterprise_.

The fifth and sixth ships in the fleet didn't serve as important a role as the others. The fifth ship was the _USS Trinity_, a Defiant Class starship, while the sixth was a small but just as agile Saber Class ship titled the _USS Iwo Jima_. These two ships were being sent to serve as extra crew carriers, and as plain old warships, in case any hostile aliens decide to attack the fleet while they were establishing their base in the Delta Quadrant. The _Trinity_ was under the command of Captain Veset Maharet, and the _Iwo Jima_ was under the command of Captain Neil Hedgecoff.

Maxwell finished reading his list in time to see the fleet drop out of warp in the designated system. "Signal the fleet to stand by, we need to wait for our…companions."

"Acknowledged Admiral." The comm officer replied.

The fleet waited, and waited, and waited some more. Admiral Maxwell nearly fell asleep in his command chair.

"Excuse me Admiral, but who exactly are we waiting for?" the first officer asked.

"Admiral!" the sensor officer yelled. "Klingon vessels decloaking off the port bow. They're hailing us."

"On screen." Admiral Maxwell stood up as the image of a Klingon Officer appeared.

"Starship _Highwind_, I am General Mat'agh. I will be commanding the Klingon expedition fleet." The image of the Klingon General was somewhat intimidating. The General was a tall, very strong looking Klingon, and the tone of his voice was that of a man you wouldn't want to go toe to toe with in a battle.

"Greetings General Mat'agh. I am Admiral James Maxwell of the _USS Highwind_. I will be commanding the Federation fleet."

"Yes, Admiral Maxwell. I have been watching your career with interest. Your exploits during the Dominion war were quite…satisfactory by Klingon standards. It is good to see that Starfleet is finally promoting its warriors to the higher ranks instead of just its science officers."

"Well, I have heard of you as well, General. I enjoyed reading about your exploits during the Dominion War. Of course I'm sure the texts on the subject in no way accurately portrayed the frenzy of the actual battles you served in." Maxwell replied.

"Yes, texts can hardly imitate the true exhilaration of a battle, but I'm sure you and I participated in some of the same battles during the war. However, there will be plenty of time to discuss our exploits later. Is your fleet ready to depart?"

"Yes General, we're standing by. Should we take the lead?"

"No, we will. Our attack ships will enter the sector and secure it first. Time your departure so you will arrive exactly seven minutes following our arrival."

"Acknowledged, General. Maxwell out."

The Klingon fleet turned and accelerated quickly, passing the Federation fleet and then bursting into pinpoints of light with a bright green flash. Maxwell watched them go, watching the chronometer as soon as the Klingon ships disappeared.

"All vessels, this is Admiral Maxwell. Secure all systems and deploy transwarp engines."

The glow from the warp nacelles of the Federation fleet faded out, one ship at a time. Then, with a hum that carried even through the void of space, the nacelles suddenly began to glow a bright green. Forming up into a column, with the attack ships in front, and the others in back, the fleet flashed and then vanished into distant pinpricks of light.

Chapter 4 

Maxwell stared out the window of the conference room at the two massive structures that were taking shape. One, a good distance away, was the transwarp gate, which he noted would most likely be completed within a month. The second was the starbase. That was going to take several months more to complete, however it was necessary for the Federation to have a base of operations within this quadrant. The starbase was being built to serve that purpose.

Maxwell left the conference room and headed to the bridge, where the viewscreen was focused on the brilliant blue planet they were orbiting. The planet was technically Class M, however its surface would require extensive terraforming before it would be fully habitable. Maxwell paused to look at the screen for a moment, and then he sat down. "Status report please," he said as he tapped the panel next to his seat.

"Aye sir," the operations officer said. "The construction leaders report that they had some minor problems earlier today, but work is back on schedule."

"Are they still predicting it will be completed within a month?"

"Yes sir."

"Good. What of the starbase?"

"Construction leaders report that the starbase should be completed within six months. They'll be able to work much faster once the gate is up and additional construction crews arrive."

"All right. What word from our ships?"

"Captain Nolan reports that the _Monitor_ has completed its survey of this system. They are ready to begin deploying sentry probes. Also, Captain Hawking reports that the _Adramalech_ has begun preparations for terraforming."

"Good. I'll contact them myself for their orders. Thank you." Maxwell stood up and headed for his ready room. Sitting down at his desk, he tapped the controls there and the screen nearby suddenly displayed an image. "Captain Nolan," Maxwell said.

"Yes sir. What can I do for you?" Nolan replied.

"I understand you've completed your survey of this system. Anything special to report?"

"Yes sir. The sixth planet of the system appears to have dilithium deposits below its surface. Not sure of the concentration. The planet's crust has some unusual properties that reflect most of our scans."

"Interesting. Having some dilithium in the system would be handy, however we'll deal with that later. Are you prepared to deploy your sentry probes?"

"Yes sir. We have calculated the appropriate locations and are prepared to deploy them. Once they're all deployed, we will link them all to your sensors."

"Good. That will do until the starbase is operational. You may proceed."

"Aye sir. Nolan out." His image disappeared, and Maxwell tapped the nearby panels again. The image of Captain John Hawking appeared.

"Captain Hawking, what's your status?"

Hawking had an annoyed look on his face as he replied. "We've been having some problems sir. Our deflector systems keep overloading. We're not sure what's causing it."

"Hmm, I take it you wont be able to begin terraforming operations until the deflector is repaired?"

"Yes sir. We should have the deflector operational within the hour. We will begin terraforming the northern continent then."

"All right. You have my authorization to proceed."

"Thank you Admiral. Hawking out."

"Admiral?" one of the bridge officers said. "We received a long range transmission from Starfleet a few moments ago. They have sent instructions for what to do once the gate is completed. In addition, they reported that they've begun preparing supplies to send once the gate is ready."

"Good. Dispatch a transmission back to them saying that we will welcome the supplies." Maxwell stood up, looked around the bridge to make sure that there wasn't anything else requiring his attention. "I'll be in my ready room. Keep me informed of anything out of the ordinary."

Maxwell walked briskly to his ready room, where he sat down at his desk. "James Maxwell's personal log. Stardate eight one four four eight point three. Work here in the Delta Quadrant is nothing short of exhausting. Between the administrative work, and the actual physical effort put forth by everyone here, I'm amazed that we've been working as well as we have. Given that however, I have complete confidence in the crews under my command. Their efforts will not go without reward, as I intend to give everyone extended shore leave after their work here is done. End log."

Maxwell stood up and walked to the window of his ready room. He gazed out at the stars silently, when suddenly something streaked by towards the planet. "Maxwell to bridge, what the hell was that?" he asked in a surprised voice.

"Unknown Admiral. It entered the atmosphere of the planet and disintegrated. We weren't able to figure out what it was before it was destroyed."

"Very well. Keep an eye out for any more of those, whatever they are."

"Aye sir." Maxwell turned back towards the window, gazed at the stars for a little while longer, then sat down at his desk to take care of today's administrative work.

"Sentry probe deployed successfully sir."

"Very good," Captain Nolan said. "Helm, move us to the next deployment location."

"Aye sir."

The _USS Monitor_ fired its impulse engines and began heading for a point nearby where it was going to deploy the next sentry probe. These probes were designed to continuously scan the outer system for anything out of the ordinary. Eventually, once the Federation fully secured the system, more powerful sensor arrays would be constructed, and the probes would be retrieved for use elsewhere.

"Captain?" the sensor officer said. "We're getting intermittent contacts from sensor probe alpha seven."

Nolan frowned. "What does it look like to you?"

"I can't tell sir. Whatever it is, it's staying on the edge of the probe's sensor range."

"Are any of our other ships near that probe?" Nolan asked.

"The _Iwo Jima_ is conducting weapon tests near probe alpha five."

"Open a channel to the _Iwo Jima_."

"Aye sir."

The viewscreen flashed to the view of a bridge, where a middle-aged man was sitting in the command chair. "This is Captain Hedgecoff," the man said.

"Captain Hedgecoff, this is Captain Nolan of the _Monitor_."

"Yes Captain Nolan, what can we do for you?"

"I was wondering if you wouldn't mind investigating something for me. One of our sentry probes, alpha seven, is picking up something. We can't tell what it is. Would you mind heading over there and checking it out?"

"Well I was looking for something to do other than weapon tests. Sure, we'll check it out. _Iwo Jima_ out."

The _Iwo Jima_ dropped out of warp with a flash. Directly ahead was the small sensor probe, with only the blackness of space around it. Captain Hedgecoff stood up from his command chair. "Let's go to yellow alert. I don't want any surprises. Conduct both short and long range scans of this area. If the probe is picking up anything, I want to know what it is."

"Yellow Alert," the computer declared. The various bridge officers immediately got to work scanning the system and making sure the vessel was ready for any emergency.

"Captain," the sensor officer reported, "There's a ship on the edge of our long range sensors."

"What type of ship? Can you tell what species it is?" Hedgecoff asked quickly.

"Can't tell from this distance sir," the sensor officer paused, "Captain! They're launching something in our direction!"

"Red Alert!" Hedgecoff yelled. Alert klaxons began to ring. Hedgecoff watched the viewscreen as the object came nearer and nearer.

"Captain, it's not a weapon. It appears to be some sort of probe. Its course indicates it's heading for the inner system," the sensor officer called.

"Can we catch it with a tractor beam? I want to know who launched it."

The tactical officer tapped his controls quickly. In space, the streak that indicated the probe suddenly came to a halt as a blue beam came from the _Iwo Jima_. "We have it Captain."

Suddenly in space the probe glowed yellow, then exploded. "What happened?" Hedgecoff said.

"The vessel must have self destructed the probe sir."

"Set an intercept course for that ship. I want to know who keeps sending those probes."

"Captain, the vessel is no longer there. Sensors indicated it jumped to warp as soon as the probe self destructed."

Hedgecoff stood silently for a moment. "Very well. Stand down from yellow alert. Inform the _Monitor_ of what we found, and then set a course for where we were conducting our tests. I'll be in my ready room."

The officers acknowledged and set to work. Hedgecoff walked into his ready room and sat down at his desk, tapping the controls quickly.

"The vessel jumped to warp right after the probe detonated sir. We weren't able to figure out what species it was."

"Very well. Keep an eye out for any more probes or ships. Let me know the moment you find anything."

"Yes Admiral. Hedgecoff out."

Maxwell sat silently for a moment. He didn't like this situation, but he wasn't too worried. 'I doubt they'll return. It was probably just an alien ship that decided to investigate the strange things that were happening here. Nothing more.' He said to himself. Maxwell went back to work, content that nothing else out of the ordinary would happen.

Chapter 5 

"Final system check is underway. Beginning calibration procedure now."

Admiral Maxwell watched his displays intently. This was the big test. Would the transwarp gate function correctly? Would it correctly link to the other gate back in the Alpha Quadrant? If it didn't do those things, the construction would have to be destroyed, and the expedition would have to return to the alpha quadrant.

"System control reports they are ready to initiate startup sequence."

Maxwell looked up. "Very well. Instruct them to proceed."

Out in space, the massive gate suddenly began to glow. Slowly, a greenish colored rift began to appear. The rift expanded, and suddenly blossomed into a giant swirling vortex.

"Is the conduit stable?" Maxwell asked.

"It appears so sir."

"Ready the special probe. Launch as soon as it is prepared."

"Yes sir."

A small object was launched out of one of the _Highwind's _torpedo tubes. It shot towards the vortex and then vanished into the distance.

"Admiral, the probe has detected subspace relays within the corridor. They have federation signatures."

"Good, then the relay system must be ready for testing. Is our end ready to link with the relays?"

"Yes sir. The engineers are initiating link now."

Maxwell smiled. "Hail Starfleet command."

The operations officer complied. The bridge crew was silent for a moment, then the viewscreen switched to a static-covered image. The operations officer tapped his controls quickly, and the image cleared up to reveal Admiral Picard.

"Well done Admiral Maxwell," Picard said with a smile. "Starfleet command would like me to relay their congratulations on the successful completion of your mission."

"Thank you Admiral Picard. I'll make sure to pass along their thanks to my crews."

"Well, we have a supply convoy ready for you. Would you care to give the word?" Picard said, smiling.

Maxwell smiled. "Maxwell to the fleet. You may enter the gate when ready."

The image of Picard disappeared, and the image of the massive gate was restored. Everyone on the bridge watched carefully. Moments later, a ship appeared out of the vortex.

"Admiral Maxwell, the _Enterprise_ has arrived." Maxwell smiled as the _Enterprise_ moved out of the way. Another ship appeared out of the vortex. Maxwell noted with surprise that it was another Sovereign class ship. Several other ships arrived. Several freighters appeared, followed by a few construction ships. Two colony vessels arrived moments later, carrying the people who would make the fourth planet in this system their home. Finally, two other ships arrived. One was a Steamrunner class attack ship, and the other was an older Ryujo class fighter carrier. "Admiral Maxwell? Admiral Picard wishes to beam aboard."

"Tell him he may and that I will meet him in my ready room." Maxwell then hurried off and stood by his desk. A few minutes later, the elder Admiral walked in and they shook hands. "Welcome to the Delta Quadrant Admiral Picard."

"It is a pleasure to be here. I am pleased as to the progress you have made here," the older man said.

"Thank you sir. It hasn't been easy but everyone here has been working hard, and I am pleased with the results. Would you care for a drink?" Maxwell asked.

"No thank you. I don't have very much time, I just wished to brief you as to the latest specifics of your mission." The two men sat down at the desk and Picard began to speak. "We have brought additional construction crews and supplies for the starbase. The base will be designated 'Starbase 804' once operational. We have also brought the colonists for this planet."

"All right. The _Adramalech_ has made progress in its terraforming operations. We should have the northern continent of the planet habitable by early next month."

"Good. Now, we have brought additional ships that are to be added to your fleet. The _USS Steamrunner_, under the command of Captain Nicholas Jacobe has been transferred to your fleet."

Maxwell nodded. "We haven't had any incidents with any hostile ships yet, but it's good to know we'll have some more firepower of our own."

"Speaking of firepower," Picard said with a smile, "Starfleet has also dispatched the _USS Sovereign_ to serve here. She is under the command of Captain Eddy Dew."

"Excellent," Maxwell said. "That explains why you brought another Sovereign class ship with you."

"Indeed. That ship also has your second in command aboard."

"My second in command sir?"

"Yes. He is Commodore Moe Burdick. He has an outstanding service record and will make a fine first officer for you. The _Sovereign_ will serve as his flagship in major engagements."

"All right, I look forward to meeting him."

"One last thing, then I must be going. The _USS Ryujo_ is here with a full compliment of fighters for your ship. It will transfer them here then depart. The fighter crews will also transfer over at that time."

"All right. Ill have my officers assign them crew quarters immediately. Thank you for briefing me Admiral Picard. I look forward to hearing from you again." The two men stood up and shook hands once again.

"You've done an excellent job here. Keep up the good work." Picard then walked out of the ready room.

Maxwell tapped the controls at his desk, logging orders for his duty officers to assign quarters to the fighter crews that would soon arrive. He then tapped several other controls, dispatching a message to the _Sovereign_ instructing Commodore Burdick to beam aboard in one hour.

"Commodore Burdick, reporting as ordered." He stood at attention in front of Admiral Maxwell's desk.

"At ease," Maxwell said as he stood up and extended his hand. The two shook hands, then Maxwell motioned him to take a seat. "Welcome to the Delta Quadrant."

"Thank you sir."

"I assume you've read the mission briefings Starfleet command prepared. This will not be an easy assignment. There is a lot of work that needs to be done, and I expect you to put forth as much effort as everyone else here."

"I understand sir."

"Good. Now, let's get down to business. There will be plenty of time for pleasantries later. I want you to review the records and current reports for our status here. You'll need to be as informed as I am as to what's been going on. I want to be able to call upon you for something without having to explain the specifics."

"Aye sir."

"Good. Now, your first official assignment will be to get the new construction crews to work on the starbase. I'll expect your full report as to the current status of construction, as well as the crews assigned to that within twenty four hours."

"Aye sir."

"All right. That's all for now. Do you have any questions?"

"No sir."

"Very well, you are dismissed." Burdick turned around and walked briskly towards the door. "Oh, one more thing," Maxwell called. Burdick stopped and turned back around. "I'd like you to join me for a drink in the mess hall tonight. Nineteen hundred hours."

Burdick smiled. "I'll be there sir." He then turned again and walked out of the ready room.

"Fighter wing Alpha, you are cleared for launch."

"Acknowledged control." Commander William "Rogart" Rogart tapped the controls and his attack fighter lifted off from its docking point. "Rogart to Alpha squadron, form up on me once you leave the hanger." The various pilots acknowledged, and Rogart tapped his controls again, launching the fighter out into space. He decreased his throttle, and flew a few circles around the _Ryujo_ before his squadron had left the bay. They formed up and headed for the Akira class ship nearby. "Alpha One to _Highwind_, requesting permission to land."

"Acknowledged Alpha One. You and your squadron are cleared for landing via hangar door one. Beta and Gamma squadrons are to land via hangar door two."

"Acknowledged. Alpha one to Gamma one, take Gamma and Beta squadrons to land in hangar door two."

"Acknowledged Alpha one," the voice of Lieutenant Theodore "Thompson" Thompson came over the speaker. Rogart cut the channel and guided his ship towards the massive hangar bay of the _Highwind_. As he entered, he cut power, and with the skills of an expert he landed his ship in the appropriate fighter rack. He secured the systems and climbed out of his fighter. Walking briskly to a nearby ladder, he descended back to the main flight deck and watched the rest of the squadrons land. He waited calmly for Lieutenant Thompson to meet him, and then he walked towards a nearby turbolift.

"Deck one," Rogart said. The turbolift shot upwards, arriving on the designated deck. The two men walked forward towards a nearby door and tapped the controls next to it.

"Enter," came a voice from inside. The doors hissed open and the two of them walked into the room and stood at attention next to the desk.

"Commander Rogart and Lieutenant Thompson, reporting as ordered," Rogart said.

"At ease gentlemen," Admiral Maxwell said, looking up from the padd he was reading. "Welcome aboard the _Highwind_."

"Thank you Admiral," the two of them said.

"Your reputations precede you. I understand your three fighter squadrons have some of the best pilots to graduate from the academy."

"You're damn right," Thompson said quickly. Rogart glared at him but Maxwell simply laughed.

"I'm glad you think so highly of them. I began my career as a fighter pilot actually, so I know what it's like."

"Really sir?" Rogart asked, surprised.

"Yes. Served in the Omicron attack wing during the dominion war. Unfortunately most of that wing was destroyed after the battle to retake Deep Space Nine. Starfleet then decided to post me as the chief conn officer aboard the _USS Thor_ instead of putting me in command of another fighter squadron."

"It's a shame you weren't given command of another fighter squadron sir. The Omicron wing was one of the deadliest fighter wings we had back then. Seems like a waste of talent to put one of those pilots aboard a starship." Rogart replied.

"Perhaps, but Starfleet didn't think so, and I simply followed orders," Maxwell said. "Now, let's get back to business. Gather up your pilots. We have crew quarters for them on decks nine and ten. The deck officer in the hangar bay will provide you with the complete listing. Ill let you guys get settled in, but then I want you to report here in three hours for a briefing."

"Aye sir," Rogart replied.

"Dismissed," Maxwell said.

Chapter 6 

"_USS Highwind_ is cleared to dock at mooring alpha."

"Acknowledged," Maxwell responded. "Blue alert. All stations secure for docking." The lights on the bridge changed to blue as the officers set about to getting ready to dock. "Take us into the bay, thrusters only."

The ship moved forward slowly, entering the massive internal docking bay of the now completed starbase. With much care and precision, the ship moved to the appropriate location. Tractor beams locked the ship in place, and a docking tube extended out from the starbase.

"Docking procedure completed successfully Admiral," one of the officers said.

"Well done everyone. Finish securing the vessel. I'm going aboard the starbase." With that, Maxwell walked to the turbolift and headed for the docking tube. Stepping through the doors, Maxwell arrived in a corridor where a sign said 'Welcome to Starabase 804." Standing there in the corridor was Commodore Burdick.

"Welcome aboard your starbase Admiral," he said. "All systems are undergoing their final tests now, but everything seems to be working fine. We have enough moorings to dock all vessels here if needed."

"That's good to know," Maxwell replied.

"Your office is located on the operations deck. Your quarters are on deck thirteen," Burdick said as they began walking towards a nearby turbolift.

"All right. I want to see ops first, then I'll deal with moving in."

The two entered the turbolift. "Ops," Burdick said. The turbolift shot upwards at a very fast pace. Moments later the doors hissed open and Admiral Maxwell stepped out. "Admiral on the deck," Burdick called. The crewmen on the deck all stopped working and stood at attention.

"At ease," Maxwell said as he looked around. The operations deck was huge. It had windows facing every direction, allowing for a view of any part of the upper level of the station. Consoles lined every wall, from weapon controls to sensor systems to docking control. In the center of the deck was a slightly elevated platform with a single chair. Maxwell walked over to it, examined it, and then sat down.

"I trust you like your command chair Admiral?" Burdick said with a smile. "It can rotate three hundred and sixty degrees, and the arm panels will provide you with summary status reports from all departments."

"Very nice. What is the latest report from the fleet?"

Burdick held up the padd he had been holding and he began reading from it. "The _Monitor_ reports it located a class nine nebula during one of its scans."

"Any indication of valuable materials within the nebula?" Maxwell asked curiously.

"Captain Nolan reports he didn't conduct a detailed scan since he was running behind on his mapping of the system. He sent us the coordinates of the nebula however."

"Hmm," Maxwell signaled to one of the deck officers, "Order the _Endeavor_ to those coordinates. Tell Captain Peters to scan for any rare materials or components." The deck officer acknowledged and walked off. "Anything else Commodore?"

"Captain Hawking reports that terraforming is still running behind due to his deflector problems, however it is progressing as fast as possible. Oh, and one important item. The warp drive aboard the _USS Trinity_ broke down three hours ago. Captain Maharet reports that the drive is going to need an overhaul before it can be used again."

"All right. Inform Captain Maharet that he is to dock at the starbase immediately. Burdick I want you to contact Starfleet and get the necessary parts for the overhaul."

"Aye sir," Burdick replied.

"Now, I'm going to have the _Highwind_ placed in drydock for the immediate future. My crew needs some rest, so I'm going to let them move in here for the time being. I also want you to dock the _Sovereign_. There's no need to waste antimatter if your ship is just going to sit in orbit of the planet for a while."

"Understood sir."

"All right. I'm going to go gather up my belongings now and start moving in. Keep me informed of any new developments." With that, Maxwell stood up and walked quickly to the turbolift.

Commodore Burdick was strolling towards a nearby turbolift, casually admiring the view from the windows, when suddenly the lights dimmed. Walking quickly to a nearby conduit interface, he tapped the controls and a schematic of the starbase was displayed. Rather, it was a schematic bathed in red. The station shuddered slightly, and the alert klaxons began to ring.

"Computer, situation report!" Burdick called as he began to run to the nearby turbolift.

"Emergency procedures are in effect. Primary stabilizers have failed. Main reactor is offline. Expected loss of geo-synchronous orbit in eight minutes, forty nine seconds."

Burdick broke into a sprint at this and stormed into the turbolift. The lift shot to ops, where he emerged to a room of marginally controlled chaos. Crewers were running everywhere, and Admiral Maxwell was standing next to his command chair, barking orders.

"Can we get the stabilizers back online?" he yelled.

"I don't know sir. We're attempting to do so but we don't even know what's wrong!" one of the crewmen called.

Maxwell tapped his comm badge. "Computer, initiate station-wide evacuation alert." A new klaxon began wailing, as people all over the station began running to their assigned escape pods. In the docking ring, crewmen hurried to their respective vessels, preparing them for launch.

"All vessels, initiate emergency launch procedures. Computer, open docking bay doors. Emergency override authorization Burdick gamma six three nine."

"Acknowledged," the computer replied.

"All right everyone, you've done all you can," Maxwell yelled. Get to your escape pods, now!" The crewmen complied, retreating to nearby turbolifts which led to their escape pod racks.

"Loss of geo-synchronous orbit in three minutes, seventeen seconds," the computer declared. Burdick looked up at Maxwell, wondering what he should do now, when he noticed the smirk on the man's face.

"Admiral, the _Highwind_ has left the docking bay. The bay is now empty. All starbase crewmen are in their appropriate shuttles and escape pods," Burdick said.

"Very well. Computer, stand down evacuation drill." With that, the lights all illuminated again and the klaxons went silent. Maxwell tapped a control, "Maxwell to all hands. Excellent work, you successfully evacuated the station with three minutes to spare. All crewmen may now return to their appropriate stations of duty. Department heads, I want evaluations of how your departments performed during the drill." Maxwell then turned to Burdick. "Inform all vessels that they may dock once again. Also, tell all captains I want evaluations of how their crews performed during the drill."

Burdick smiled, "Yes sir. Maybe next time you could inform me when we're having a drill? I nearly killed myself trying to get to ops."

"Oh come now Commodore, you wouldn't want me to ruin all my fun, now would you?" Maxwell said, laughing.

Burdick laughed in response then hurried off to inform the captains of Maxwell's orders, watching the half laughing half annoyed crewmen entering ops from the nearby turbolift as he did so. "Commodore Burdick to all vessels, congratulations on your fine conduct during that drill. All ships are to dock once again and submit evaluations of your crew's performance during the drill. Starbase 804 out."

"The crew performed remarkably for their first drill, I must say," Maxwell said as Burdick walked back towards the center of ops.

"I agree sir, though you did make it seem very convincing if I do say so," Burdick replied.

"Yes I set up the parameters myself. Sadly I know exactly what it's like to be forced to evacuate a vessel, so I was able to apply that to the evacuation here as well." Maxwell then stood up and stretched. "What time is it?"

"Twenty one hundred hours sir," Burdick replied, looking up to see another set of crewmen appear from the turbolifts.

"Good. Twenty one hundred hours, Alpha shift is relieved." The computer beeped an acknowledgement as the crewmen on ops began to disperse. "I'm going to retire to my quarters, I have some work I need to get done before I go to bed. Burdick, I'd like you to gather the crew evaluation reports for me. We'll discuss them tomorrow morning at oh eight hundred hours in my ready room," Maxwell said.

"Aye sir. Goodnight." Maxwell nodded then walked off to the turbolift, leaving a still chucking Burdick on ops.

**Chapter 7**

"It's kind of ironic. A mission outside the boundaries of Federation space, into a part of the galaxy where few have dared tread. It's a dream assignment for any Federation officer. So why is it so boring?" Maxwell mumbled to himself as he sat in his command chair aboard Starbase 804. "I should've run into at least half a dozen hostile alien species by now, but instead I just sit here requesting status reports, holding evacuation drills, and telling everyone that they're doing a good job. Why can't we have some action around here?"

"Admiral?" Commodore Burdick said as he approached Maxwell's command chair.

"Yes Commodore Burdick," Maxwell noticed the smile on the man's face as he walked up, "What did Prefect42 do this time?"

Burdick smiled as he replied. "It seems he has decided to cause more problems for us sir. He somehow managed to backwash the entire plumbing system on the starbase. We've had dozens of reports of people's sinks shooting water out of their drains."

"I certainly hope he at least had the foresight of backwashing it through the clean water tanks." Maxwell replied, frowning.

"Yes he did sir. Only clean water was shot through the system. He at least made sure that the raw sewage tank valves were shut before he pulled this little stunt."

"Well at least he has some intelligence. I know I was hoping for some action, but this wasn't exactly what I had in mind." Maxwell said, smiling. "Maxwell to Lieutenant Munroe."

"Munroe here sir." Came the reply.

"Please locate Crewman Prefect42 and escort him to the brig. He is to be held there until I can have a talk with him."

"Understood sir. Munroe out."

Maxwell then turned back towards Burdick, "Well, now that we've had that taken care of, let's see what's happening in the quadrant today, shall we?" Maxwell then turned towards one of the deck officers. "Lieutenant, status report please."

The Lieutenant turned towards the command chair. "Aye sir. All starbase systems, except for the plumbing, are operating at one hundred percent efficiency."

"Excellent," Maxwell replied. "What of our starships?"

"The _Adramalech_ burned out its main deflector again this morning during its terraforming operations. Captain Hawking reports that it should be operational again within the hour. The dock master reports that the _USS Trinity's_ warp drive overhaul is proceeding as scheduled. It should be finished in four days. All other vessels report nothing out of the ordinary."

"Very good," Maxwell replied. "Looks like it's going to be another mundane day for us," he said smiling. "What's the latest word from the _Monitor_?"

"Last report was received one hour and twenty minutes ago. Captain Nolan said everything was normal and that he was proceeding to the next system."

"That's odd, I ordered him to report in every hour. This is technically hostile space," Maxwell swiveled towards Burdick. "What do you think?"

"It's most likely just a comm system failure. Nolan isn't exactly the type of guy who goes around picking fights," Burdick replied.

"You're probably right," Maxwell replied.

"ADMIRAL!" one of the officers yelled as he jumped up.

"Ensign, this is the operations level of a Federation starbase, not the trading bazaar of some planet in the Delphic Expanse. You do not interrupt people to get my attention. Is that clear?" Maxwell replied sternly.

"Yes sir, but Admiral, I'm picking up something," the ensign replied.

"And we salute you for that, now if you don't mind…"

"Admiral, it's a distress call from the _Monitor_."

The entire ops level went quiet. Admiral Maxwell stood up from his chair and walked towards the viewscreen. "On screen."

The image of Captain Nolan appeared on the screen. Behind him, crewmen could be seen running back and forth, and the red alert klaxons could be heard over all the chaos on the bridge.

"_USS Monitor _to Starbase 804, I repeat, _USS Monitor_ to Starbase 804! We are under attack! Three enemy vessels…" Suddenly Nolan's voice was eclipsed by a burst of static. "Opened fire as soon as they were in visual range. All attempts at negotiation have failed." There was another burst of static. "Main power is offline. Shields have failed, and weapons are gone. Life support is failing. I don't know how much longer we can hold out! Send reinforcements! Repeat, send reinforcements!" Behind Nolan, a console exploded, and then the transmission ended.

Maxwell was silent only for a moment. "Ensign!" he gestured to the comm officer who had informed him of the distress call. "Get me the _Ticonderoga_!"

The viewscreen's view of the nearby starscape was suddenly replaced by the image of a young man in a Starfleet uniform. "Captain Velkar," Maxwell said quickly. "The Monitor is under attack. We're transmitting its coordinates to you. You are ordered to proceed to that location and use any force necessary to drive off the attackers. Once you drive them off, stay and help the _Monitor_. Do not pursue the enemy ships if they retreat."

"Understood Admiral, we're getting underway now."

Aboard the bridge of the _Ticonderoga_, Captain Velkar jumped into action. "Red Alert! Helm, set course for the _Monitor's_ position. Maximum warp." The lights on the bridge dimmed as the red alert klaxons began to sound. Velkar sat down in his command chair as the vessel jumped to warp. "I want weapons to be ready. Lock onto any enemy vessels and fire at will once we arrive. Helm, you are to move the ship next to the _Monitor_ and extend our shields to protect it. Velkar to sickbay."

"Sickbay here," came the reply.

"Have emergency medical teams stand by in transporter rooms one and two," Velkar said quickly.

"Understood sir."

"Velkar to Engineering."

"Engineering."

"Emergency repair teams are to stand by in transporter rooms three and four."

"Acknowledged Captain."

"All transporter rooms are to stand by for my signal to transport." Velkar turned towards his tactical officer. "I also want a security team standing by in transporter room one. If we detect intruders, your team is to transport in before the medical teams."

"Yes sir." The tactical officer tapped his comm badge and spoke, getting a security team ready.

"What is our ETA at the _Monitor's_ location?" Velkar asked.

"Nine minutes, thirteen seconds Captain." Came the reply.

Back aboard the starbase, Admiral Maxwell sat in his command chair, looking over the sensor reports that had been sent back from the _Monitor_ before it came under attack. From the looks of it, all the systems the _Monitor_ had scanned were unpopulated and contained nothing more than some planets and moons.

Maxwell turned towards Burdick, "The _Monitor_ doesn't appear to have stumbled on anything out of the ordinary. There's no logical reason for her to have been attacked."

Burdick replied, "It's possible that Captain Nolan accidentally entered hostile space without realizing it. Maybe the attackers thought the ship posed a significant threat and opened fire."

"That's possible," Maxwell replied. "We can never be sure about that though. Contact all vessels patrolling the borders of the system. Have them go to yellow alert for the time being."

"Aye sir," Burdick replied. As he walked off, he smirked as he heard Admiral Maxwell mutter something.

"We wanted action, now we've got it."

**Chapter 8**

Captain Velkar started out the viewscreen of the _Ticonderoga_ as it tunneled through subspace in an attempt to save the _Monitor_. "Ensign," Velkar said to the helmsman, "Time to intercept?"

"Fifteen seconds sir. Preparing to drop out of warp…now."

Outside the viewscreen, the starlines faded back into stars as the _Ticonderoga_ appeared in the sector.

"I want a full sensor scan. Keep weapons ready in case the attackers appear." Velkar turned towards the sensor station. "Any sign of the _Monitor_?"

"Negative sir. I'm detecting a debris field up ahead though."

"Anything sizeable?"

"Negative, it's all relatively small."

"All right. Helm, take us into the debris field, one-quarter impulse. Keep sensors scanning for any life forms."

The _Ticonderoga_ glided forward into the field, as its navigational deflector drove back little pieces of debris.

"Well," Velkar said, "At least the _Monitor_ made a good accounting for itself."

"Captain!" the sensor officer barked. "I'm picking up the Monitor!"

"Where?" Velkar said, jumping out of his seat.

"About a million kilometers ahead."

"Put it on screen."

As the image appeared on the viewscreen, the entire bridge went quiet. Velkar couldn't help but feel a little sick as he saw the image.

The _Monitor_ was barely a ship anymore. Its entire port nacelle has been wrecked. There were numerous holes in both the saucer and stardrive section. The escape pod racks were empty, indicating that at least some of the crew had abandoned ship.

"Are there any lifesigns?" Velkar asked.

"I can't tell sir. The residual energy from the enemy weapons are making it difficult for me to scan the ship's interior."

"Can we transport, and is there life support?"

"Sensors indicate that life support is still functioning on decks seven, four, and one. Transporter functions won't be inhibited by the energy traces.

"All right. Velkar to transporter rooms, stand by to transport aboard. Transporter room one, stand by, I'm joining the away team." As Velkar walked to the turbolift, he turned towards his second in command. "Commander, you have the bridge."

The bridge of the _Monitor_ was a wreck. Lighting was offline, so the deck was lit only by the eerie red glow of the alert lights. Bulkheads were everywhere, and most of the consoles were offline. With a glow, the security team, accompanied by Captain Velkar, appeared on the bridge. Moments later, a medical team materialized next to the security team. Everyone flipped on their wrist lights, as the security team pulled out phasers and the medical team activated their tricorders.

"Velkar to all units, maintain open comlinks. Medical teams, scan for survivors. Engineering teams, work on stabilizing life support, and then get the internal lights operational again. It would be nice to see what we're doing."

The teams acknowledged, and Velkar began to climb over bulkheads towards the back of the bridge. Suddenly he heard a crash, and he looked nearby to see some bulkheads moving.

"Over here!" Velkar yelled. Two of the security officers, and one of the medics came to his call, and they began to pull the bulkheads up. Moments later, their lights revealed the form of a human male. "Captain Nolan!" Velkar said.

"What's left of him," Nolan replied, coughing. Velkar and one of the security officers supported him while the medic pulled out a med kit and began to scan him.

"What happened Nolan?" Velkar said. Nolan coughed forcefully, and Velkar regretted asking the question.

"Minor lacerations to the face and head, two broken ribs, a partially collapsed lung, and a broken leg. Captain, we're going to need to get him back to the _Ticonderoga_ now. You'll have to wait until he's stabilized before asking him questions." The medic said.

"All right. Nolan, you focus on healing. We'll work on getting your ship operational again." Velkar said.

The medic moved forward, and Velkar and the security officer transferred Nolan's weight to her shoulders. "Jones to _Ticonderoga_, two to beam directly to sickbay." With a glow, the two of them dematerialized.

Velkar moved away from where they had found Nolan and made his way over to the master systems display panel. Pulling out an emergency power cell, he attached it to the panel, and a schematic of the _Monitor_ appeared. Giving it a brief once over, Velkar noted that most of the ship was bathed in red. Only the bridge, engineering, and one of the science labs weren't in bad shape. "Velkar to Hoffman."

"Hoffman here sir."

"What's the status of engineering?"

"It's pretty beat up sir. We should be able to stabilize life support. Structural integrity is near critical, though with a few emergency generators from the _Ticonderoga_ we should be able to get it to a level sufficient for towing."

"Understood. Use whatever resources and crew you need. I want this ship rigged for towing as soon as possible. The enemy ships might return soon."

"Understood sir. Hoffman out."

Velkar turned towards the medic standing nearby. "Have your teams keep scanning for lifeforms. I'm going to return to the ship now. Keep me informed if you find anyone else."

"Aye sir."

"Velkar to _Ticonderoga_, one to beam up."

About four hours later, Velkar walked into sickbay. He stood still for a moment, and then walked towards the surgical suite where Captain Nolan lay. As he approached, he turned towards the medic on duty. "How is he?"

"We've treated his internal injuries, and he should be fine. However he'll need to stay off his feet for at least forty-eight hours."

"Is he able to speak?"

"Of course I am," came a tired voice from the surgical bed. Velkar looked over to see Nolan lean up slightly. "The reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated."

"Doesn't look like they were _that_ exaggerated," Velkar replied with a smile. "How are you holding up?"

"All right, all things considered."

"Do you feel up to telling me what happened?" Velkar asked as he took a seat on the edge of the bed.

Nolan leaned back then, closed his eyes for a second, then began to speak. "We were conducting our initial scans of this sector. Moments after we started, three ships dropped out of warp. They scanned us when we began to hail them, but then they opened fire. The first volley wrecked out shield generators. Our sensors were the next target, so we weren't able to figure out who they were at first. Then the boarding parties came."

"They boarded you?" Velkar asked, surprised.

"Yes. I believe they planned to capture the ship and eliminate the crew, but that plan backfired. I managed to seal off the vital areas and we repulsed the invaders, but many of my crewers died in the process. Life support began to fail, so I ordered my crew to abandon ship."

"Yes we noticed the escape pods had all been jettisoned."

"I was about to retreat with the bridge crew when one of the boarding parties broke in. I activated the self-destruct system and stayed to delay them while the rest of the senior officers escaped. I took a hit in the process, but I managed to drive them back"

"You then disabled the self-destruct system?"

"Once the invaders transported off of the ship, yes. Were you able to recover any of the escape pods?"

"No…it appears the attackers destroyed them."

Nolan was silent, and Velkar could see a tear in his eye. "I managed to get the weapons working, and I used them to destroy one of the enemy ships, but the other two wrecked what was left. I was about to ram one of them when they suddenly retreated."

"They must have picked up my ship incoming. Captain, you said the sensors were wrecked so you couldn't identify their ships, but when they boarded, were you able to identify what species they were?"

"Yes I did. They were Hirogen"

Back on Starbase 804, Commodore Burdick sat in the command chair looking over a status report from the _Adramalech_.

"Commodore, we're receiving a communication from the _Ticonderoga_." One of the deck officers called.

"On screen."

The image of Captain Velkar appeared. "Commodore, where is Admiral Maxwell?"

"He's delivering a lecture to one of our officers in the brig. What's your status?"

"The _Monitor_ is a wreck sir. Heavy damage to the hull. The only survivor we were able to locate was Captain Nolan himself. We've stabilized life support, and we're working on boosting the structural integrity field so that we can tow the ship back to base." Velkar replied.

"Were you able to find out what happened?" Burdick said.

"Captain Nolan reports he was attacked by three Hirogen vessels. The _Monitor_ took severe damage. Boarding parties killed half of the crew, while the other half were killed after they had abandoned ship."

"Were you able to locate any escape pods?"

"Negative, we only found their remains."

The ops deck was silent for a moment. "All right," Burdick said, "Get the _Monitor_ back here as soon as you can. Ill inform Admiral Maxwell of your report."

"Acknowledged Commodore. Velkar out."

Burdick turned towards a deck officer. "Inform Admiral Maxwell of these developments."

"That won't be necessary," came a voice from behind him. Burdick turned to see Maxwell step forward. "I heard everything."

"What are your orders Admiral?" Burdick asked.

"I will contact Starfleet Command immediately and request instructions. For now, we will dispatch a few more ships to defend the borders of this system. Lieutenant," Maxwell turned towards the comm officer. "Get me the Iwo Jima."

The image of Captain Hedgecoff appeared. "Yes Admiral?"

"I have a new assignment for you. It seems the Hirogen have begun hostilities against us. I want you to begin patrolling the outer boundaries of the Serris system."

"Understood Admiral. Hedgecoff out." His face faded out.

"Now Lieutenant, get me the _Endeavor_." The image of Captain Peters appeared on the viewscreen. "Captain, the Hirogen have commenced hostilities against us. It's not safe to have your ship so far out. I want you to return to the Serris system immediately."

"Acknowledged Admiral. We will depart as soon as we complete this last scan."

"How long will that take?"

"Twenty minutes sir."

"All right, but don't delay any longer than that."

"Understood sir. Peters out."

Maxwell turned towards Burdick. "Commodore, contact our colony. Tell them that we need those planetary shield generators online as soon as possible."

"Yes sir."

As Burdick walked away, Maxwell tapped his badge. "Maxwell to Captain Dew."

"_Sovereign_ here sir." The Image of Dew appeared on the viewscreen.

"I want you to begin bringing the _Sovereign_ online. We aren't deploying you just yet, but we may need you soon. I'll have the armory begin to stock your torpedo bays, however be aware we don't have a supply of quantum torpedoes just yet."

"Understood sir. I'll begin recalling my crew immediately." The image of Dew disappeared from the viewscreen.

Maxwell walked over and sat down in his command chair. "I want our sensors linked to those of the _Steamrunner_ and the _Iwo Jima_ immediately. Have them conduct continuous scans of our borders."

"Aye sir," the comm officer reported. "Oh, sir, also, there was also a report of strange neutron energy readings coming from within this system.

"Hmm, do we know what could be causing it?" Maxwell asked, frowning.

"No sir, it doesn't match any readings in our databanks."

"Can we conduct a tachyon sweep of the area?" Maxwell asked.

"Negative sir. Only two of our ships have the modifications necessary to conduct that sweep. The _Monitor_ which is a wreck, and the _Adramalech_, which is busy with terraforming operations."

"All right," Maxwell said. "Keep an eye on that and let me know if anything comes up. I'm going to go help Dew with getting the _Sovereign_ operational. The rest of you have your orders, so let's get to it."

Chapter 9 

The peacefulness of deep space was suddenly shattered by a volley of phased torpedoes, followed by a Miranda class starship pushing it's engines far beyond their limits. Aboard the bridge of this ship, Captain Peters gripped the edges of his command chair tightly as the ship rocked hard.

"Direct hit. Shields down to twenty percent," an officer yelled.

Peters tilted his head towards the engineering station. "Impulse engine status!" he yelled.

"Captain, we can't keep this up! The temperature of the engine manifolds is already fifteen percent above red lines and rising. If we don't shut down soon the engines could overload!" Came the response.

The vessel continued to maneuver hard, until a phased torpedo penetrated the shields and slammed into the rear saucer. The ship was thrown out of control, as the flames receded to reveal a gigantic hole through the rear portion of the vessel.

"Report!" Captain Peters yelled, being the only person who managed to stay where he was after the ship was hit.

"Direct hit to the aft saucer!" The officers called out one by one, "Port phasers destroyed; The plasma conduit from engineering to the nacelle has been ruptured, we're venting drive plasma; Main power is offline; Captain, the Hirogen are closing!"

"Captain," the first officer said, "The Hirogen will destroy the _Endeavor_. We should abandon ship now while we still have the chance."

"That won't be necessary Captain," the sensor officer said quietly.

The attacking Hirogen cruiser moved in towards the _Endeavor_, preparing to destroy it, when suddenly something massive dropped out of warp. The Hirogen vessel, caught by surprise, was promptly blown into a cloud of flaming dust.

"_Sovereign _to _Endeavor_," the voice of Captain Dew came over the comm system.

"This is the _Endeavor_," Peters replied. "Glad you guys could make it."

"You know we wouldn't pass up an opportunity to save your butts," Dew said laughing. "What's your status?"

"Life support is at minimal levels. All other systems are offline," Peters replied.

"Casualties? Do you need medical teams?"

"About a dozen casualties, and over thirty people seriously wounded. Any medical help would be appreciated."

"Acknowledged. We're dispatching rescue teams now. Have your medics prepare some of the heavily injured for emergency transport. We'll take care of them here. What is the status of your structural integrity field?" Dew replied.

"Hold on," Peters said. He signaled to the engineering officer on the bridge.

"Captain, our structural integrity field is holding at around eighty percent. It should be safe for you to tow us, but I wouldn't go above warp four." The engineer said.

"All right. Ill signal Starbase 804 to have facilities ready for us. I'm going to dispatch an engineering team to help you guys with emergency repairs and to keep an eye on the integrity field. We'll activate the tractor beam as soon as the team is aboard."

The _Sovereign_ moved around the damaged Miranda class vessel. Soon afterwards a blue glow linked the two ships as the _Sovereign_ engaged a tractor beam. Moving slowly at first, the two vessels, locked together, picked up speed, and then vanished into the distance with a brief flare of light.

"These attacks are getting stronger and stronger, Admiral. If what they did to the _Monitor_ and the _Endeavor_ is anything to go by, they're most likely preparing for a full-scale offensive against us."

"You don't need to tell me this. I'm worried too. Starfleet Command however seems to think that this isn't that big a deal. They're only dispatching three ships for reinforcements. The _USS Indefatigable_ and the _USS Vigilant_ are being sent as light reinforcements, while the _USS Rachael_ is being sent to replace the _Monitor_." Maxwell replied.

"Yes, I've seen the report. I'm still nervous though. If the Hirogen launch a full scale attack against us, we'd never be able to hold them off." Burdick replied.

"Well as of now, we can only follow our orders." Maxwell replied grimly. "Lieutenant," Maxwell motioned to one of the deck officers. "What is the status of the _Trinity's_ warp engine overhaul?"

"The dockmaster reports the overhaul should be completed within two hours sir." Came the reply.

"Good," Maxwell replied. "Maxwell to Captain Maharet."

"Maharet here." Came the reply.

"Captain, the warp drive overhaul on your ship is nearly complete. You are to deploy and begin patrolling the system as soon as it's done. Begin recalling your crewmembers from shore leave immediately." Maxwell said.

"Aye sir. Maharet out."

"Admiral," the comm officer said, "we're receiving a signal from one of our construction ships."

"Put it on screen."

"Admiral," the Captain of the construction ship said, "We have completed work on the two defensive turrets you ordered built. The turrets have been brought online and armed with photon torpedoes."

"All right, good. We'll see about rearming them with quantum torpedoes when we receive a new supply. I want your ships to pull back to the starbase now."

"Yes sir, we're getting underway now."

The viewscreen returned to a view of space, and Admiral Maxwell turned back towards Burdick.

"All right, now back to our defensive plans…." Maxwell was about to start discussing his new ship deployment setup when he was interrupted by a yell from across the deck.

"Admiral! Hirogen vessels have been detected entering the system. They're heading for the starbase!"

Maxwell leapt up. "Red Alert. Bring shields online and ready weapons. Signal Serris Prime to bring planetary shields online. Launch all space worthy vessels from our docking bay." Maxwell then turned to Burdick. "Signal the _Adramalech_ to stand down terraforming operations and to prepare for combat."

Burdick nodded then raced off to one of the consoles.

"Admiral, docking control reports the _Sovereign_ is the only spaceworthy vessel currently docked. Captain Dew reports he's moving the vessel into position to defend the docking ring." One of the deck officers called.

"Close and secure space doors. Order all docking crews to reinforce the internal mooring systems, I don't want any of our ships breaking loose during combat." Maxwell walked over to the sensor station. "Do we know what we're up against?"

"Yes sir, six Hirogen starships, battle cruisers from the looks of it. Last sensor reading indicated they were proceeding at full sublight speed towards the starbase. Estimated time of arrival, four minutes." The sensor officer replied.

"Admiral," another officer called. "The Hirogen are in visual range."

"On screen."

The viewer flashed to reveal the image of six large ships bearing down on the starbase. The ships split apart, each one coming in at the base from a different vector.

"Admiral, they're firing!" the tactical officer yelled.

"All hands, brace for impact!" Maxwell yelled, grabbing onto a nearby column for support. The starbase shook as a volley of phase torpedoes hit the station's shields.

"Damage report!" Maxwell called.

"Direct hit to the primary sensor array."

Another volley hit, this time penetrating the shields in the same place.

"Admiral, primary sensor array is offline. Secondary systems engaged."

"Admiral Maxwell to all Federation vessels. The starbase is under attack. Send reinforcements immediately."

Out in space, the Hirogen ships split off again. One of them pulled up towards the docking ring, and began to fly away with the _Sovereign_ hot on its tail. The _Adramalech_ had moved into a position near the sensor array to fire on the vessels as they attacked again. Aboard the _Sovereign_, Captain Dew looked out his viewscreen at the Hirogen ship they were pursuing. Suddenly, in the distance, he saw three more Hirogen vessels appear and head straight for him.

"Evasive Maneuvers!" Dew yelled. The _Sovereign_ broke off its pursuit, pulled up as three more Hirogen ships flew by. Dew looked at his sensor display and felt his jaw drop. The sensors no longer registered only six ships, they now registered over thirty.

"Captain! The Hirogen are using some sort of holographic projector system. There are only six real ships here, but there are over twenty four holographic decoys!" the sensor officer called.

"Well that's just great. Can we tell which ones are real?"

"Yes sir, but it looks like the starbase can't."

Captain Dew looked at his sensors, and saw that the starbase, the most heavily armed object here, was firing primarily at the holographic decoys. Dew looked at his sensor displays again. "Their primary sensor array has been wrecked, that must be it. Open a channel to the starbase." Admiral Maxwell's face appeared on the viewscreen. "Admiral," Dew said, "the Hirogen are using holographic decoys. That's why they wrecked the sensor array on the starbase. They were hoping it would prevent you from determining which ones were real and which ones weren't."

Maxwell looked grim. "Well it seems they succeeded." He thought for a moment. "Wait a minute, are the Hirogen trying to jam our sensors at all?"

Dew checked his displays. "Negative sir."

"Captain, the _Iwo Jima _and the _Steamrunner_ have entered the area and are moving into attack position." The sensor officer aboard the _Sovereign_ called.

Dew looked up at Maxwell in time to see the Admiral stand up quickly. "Maxwell to all vessels, initiate computer link with the starbase, and enable transfer of sensor data through that link." Dew smiled as he realized what the Admiral was planning.

The Hirogen ships, apparently becoming confident at the starbase's apparent lack of ability to target them, began to fire indiscriminately at the base. As one of the attack ships swooped in, it suddenly caught the brunt of a massive torpedo volley. Its shields buckled and it exploded. At this, four of the Hirogen decoys faded into nothingness. The other Hirogen ships continued their attack, but one by one the starbase picked them off. The last Hirogen ship tried to make a run for it, but a phaser strike from the _Iwo Jima_ wrecked its engines, and a final torpedo volley from the _Sovereign_ destroyed it. Admiral Maxwell checked his displays, then sat down in his command chair.

"Stand down red alert." The klaxons went silent on ops. "Order all damaged vessels to begin docking, and have all undamaged vessels resume patrolling of the outer system." Maxwell stood up and turned towards Burdick. "I'm going to the docking ring to examine any damage. I want you to meet me in the conference room in three hours so we can discuss our situation."

Burdick nodded as Maxwell walked away.

Aboard the bridge of the _USS Iwo Jima_, it was a scene of marginal chaos. Crewmembers were running every which way, replacing damaged panels and bulkheads. Captain Neal Hedgecoff stood in front of his command chair, making sure everyone had at least some vague idea of what they were doing. Due to the noise level, he didn't even hear the turbolift door open behind him.

"Admiral on the bridge!" someone called.

Captain Hedgecoff turned around as everyone on the bridge came to a halt. Admiral Maxwell was standing there, looking a little surprised. "As you were," Admiral Maxwell said as he walked forward and offered a hand to Captain Hedgecoff.

"Welcome aboard the _Iwo Jima_ Admiral." Hedgecoff said as he took Maxwell's hand.

"Thank you Captain, what is the status of your vessel?" Maxwell said.

"Shields took some moderate damage during the firefight, and a large piece of debris impacted the lower hull during the battle. Our navigational deflector will need to be repaired before we can head out again." Hedgecoff replied.

"I see. Any casualties?" Maxwell replied, ducking as someone nearly clubbed him with a new bulkhead.

"No sir. A few of my crew were injured during the battle, but nothing serious."

"All right. I'm going to have our repair crews begin work on your deflector. We can't afford to have any of our ships docked for any longer than we have to." Maxwell said.

"Yes sir." Captain Hedgecoff replied.

"All right, I need to head back to the starbase now, let me know if you could use any more help." Maxwell said as he turned and headed for the turbolift.

"Aye sir."

"We took minor damage, all things considered." Burdick said as he sat at the giant conference table aboard the starbase. "We should consider ourselves lucky."

"I wouldn't go that far," Maxwell said as he stood looking through the window that overlooked the docking ring. "You have a full damage report?"

"Yes sir. The primary sensor array was wrecked, but we have enough spare parts to rebuild it. Shields took minor damage. The phased torpedoes they use can't directly pierce the shields, but if they weaken a spot first, one or two torpedoes can make it through and cause damage."

"Yes, we'll need to find some sort of retrofit for our shields to deal with that." Maxwell said.

"Now, as for our ships, the _Iwo Jima _had deflector damage and will need to be docked until it can be repaired. All other vessels are still spaceworthy, so I have had them dispatched back to their patrol areas." Burdick said.

"Good. I suppose the good news out of all of this is that Starfleet is now dispatching a full military task force to help us deal with the Hirogen threat. However, there is one issue, one that will either help us or severely hinder us." Maxwell said as he turned around and sat down.

"What's that sir?"

"The task force is commanded by Admiral Kathryn Janeway."

Chapter 10 

"Admiral, with all due respect, I think this plan of attack is asking for disaster," Admiral Maxwell said.

The heads of everyone in the conference room swiveled towards him. "Well Admiral Maxwell," Janeway said, "Don't keep us in suspense."

"This plan calls for a full frontal assault on a Hirogen staging area that our intelligence operatives located. While I don't disapprove of the attack, you're leaving only the _Highwind_ behind to defend the system. Should the Hirogen choose to launch a counterattack, I doubt I'll be able to hold them off, especially since my crew is still being recalled from shore leave," Maxwell responded grimly. "I'd feel better about this plan of action if you would leave the _Sovereign_ or the _Adramalech_ behind to help with the defense."

Janeway shook her head. "I need all the ships we have for this attack. We don't know how heavily defended the Hirogen base is, so I want to be ready. I'm sure that you and the _Highwind_ will be able to manage. Besides, I know how the Hirogen will react. They'll respond by dispatching reinforcements to the staging area immediately. They always go for their prey on their own turf before heading for areas outside their space."

"Admiral, with all due respect, you fought the Hirogen over fifteen years ago. I read over your battle reports, and I have found absolutely no similarities between their old tactics and the ones I've seen them use against us here," Maxwell said. "At least leave one other ship here to help."

"For the last time Admiral, I need all the ships available. I'd take yours but since it lacks a crew, it won't do me much good. Now, if that's your only objection, you are all dismissed. Report to your ships and prepare to depart within an hour," Janeway said standing up.

The senior officers present began to stand and chat amongst themselves. Maxwell looked around and tried to familiarize himself with all the new faces he saw. There was Captain Barry Newlands, newly arrived with Janeway's task force. He commanded another Galaxy class ship, the _USS Artemis_. Currently he was involved in an argument with Captain Maharet about whose ship was better. Captain Nolan was talking about how good it felt to have his vessel operational again. Maxwell noted as he left the room that Captain Peters looked a little down. Maxwell knew it was because the _Endeavor_ was still drydocked as it awaited the parts necessary to replace its impulse engines.

"I don't like this," Maxwell mumbled to Burdick as they walked out of the conference room. "I suspect the Hirogen are preparing for an attack by us, and they plan to strike where we are most vulnerable."

"You may be right Admiral," Burdick said as they headed for the turbolift. "However there is nothing we can do about that."

"Not at the moment no, but I'm going to see if I can do something about that," Maxwell said.

Less than an hour later, the Federation Delta Task Force, under the command of Admiral Kathryn Janeway, departed from Starbase 804. Admiral Maxwell, after having watched the vessels jump to warp, stood up and walked to his ready room. Walking to his desk, he sat down and tapped the control pad.

"Computer, send transmission to _USS Enterprise-E_, priority two."

"Acknowledged. Initiating transmission."

Maxwell waited patiently for a few minutes, then he walked to the replicator and grabbed a drink. A few minutes later, the computer beeped.

"Transmission established."

On Maxwell's screen, the image of an ensign appeared. "Ensign," Maxwell said, "Could you ask Admiral Picard if he has a moment, I have a matter I must discuss with him."

"Aye sir, stand by."

The screen displayed the Federation logo for a few moments, and then the image of Admiral Picard appeared. "Admiral Maxwell! So good to hear from you again. Tell me, how are things holding up in the Delta Quadrant?"

"Except for the massive Hirogen campaign against us, things are faring pretty well," Maxwell replied.

"Yes I have heard about the attacks. I understand Admiral Janeway is dealing with the threat."

"Admiral, it's about her that I wish to speak. I'm very worried that she's letting her past Delta Quadrant experiences cloud her judgment. I'm convinced that she's going to do something stupid here," Maxwell said.

"Admiral Janeway is one of the finest commanders in Starfleet. I don't think you'll have any problems with her," Picard replied.

"Well, she did leave the Serris system undefended sir. The only vessel here is the _Highwind_, but my crew is on shore leave. They're not expected to return for another day or so."

"Hmm…." Picard said. "It's not like Janeway to leave only one ship to defend a vital area. Did you request any additional vessels?"

"Yes sir. I requested that one of our Galaxy Class ships be left behind to help, but she refused."

"That's quite unlike her. Do you have any idea why she refused?" Picard asked.

"I have a feeling she doesn't like me Admiral," Maxwell replied.

Picard frowned. "Unfortunately I'm forced to agree. She did object rather strenuously to your promotion. Ok, here's what I'm going to do. I will authorize you to send Janeway back to the Delta Quadrant should she let her dislike of you get the better of her. However, if you can't provide good reason as to why you relieved her, the penalties for your actions will be most severe."

"All right sir, I understand," Maxwell replied grimly.

"Very well. Keep up the good work Admiral. I expect you to win that minor war you have going. _Enterprise _out."

As Picard's image blanked out, Admiral Maxwell sat back and thought. "I don't plan to let you down Admiral."

Maxwell stood up and walked out of the room. Exiting ops, he began to walk down the corridors when two men approached him. Maxwell looked at each of them and stopped.

"Admiral," one of them said, "We're ready to depart."

"Excellent," Maxwell replied. "Are you sure you guys are up to this?"

"Yes Admiral," the other shadowy figure replied. "Those Hirogen won't know what hit them."

"Very well. Lieutenant Coy, Lieutenant Dougall, I wish you luck."

The two men nodded and walked off. Maxwell watched them go, silently praying that their mission will be successful.

"Admiral, we have the enemy base in visual range," Tuvok declared from the tactical station.

"Put it on screen," Janeway said as she stood up. The massive Hirogen base appeared, looking sinister. Janeway also noted that a large number of enemy ships were clustered around it. "Janeway to the fleet, deploy to attack pattern Gamma four."

The vessels acknowledged and formed up. _Voyager_ took the center, with the _Adramalech_ to port and the _Artemis_ to starboard. The _Trinity _and the_ Vigilant_ took forward positions. The _Sovereign _took a position directly below _Voyager_, while the _Iwo Jima _and the _Steamrunner_ took to the rear. The _Ticonderoga_ stayed behind the main fleet, deploying to artillery bombardment position. The _Monitor_ and the _Rachael_ stayed at the outer edge of the system to provide sensor data.

"Admiral," Tuvok called, "Comm signals indicate that our special forces are ready."

"Order them to proceed," Janeway replied. The Hirogen station suddenly rocked as a large number of explosions occurred on its outer hull. Federation Special Forces had planted explosives on most, if not all, of the weapons emplacements. Janeway looked on and smiled, as the station was now effectively defenseless. "Janeway to the fleet, Fire at will!"

Back aboard the Starbase, Maxwell sat in his command chair. Peters sat nearby as the two of them were simply silent, knowing that the battle was already taking place. Suddenly Maxwell stood up. "Enough of this. Ensign," he said signaling to one of the officers nearby, "put Starfleet frequency one four seven mark two on audio."

After a brief squeal of static, voices began blaring.

"_Voyager_ to _Iwo Jima_, attack the Hirogen cruiser off your starboard bow."

"Acknowledged."

"_Ticonderoga_ to _Steamrunner_, we have two Hirogen destroyers closing. We could use some backup."

"Right, we're on our way."

"_Rachael_ to _Voyager_, an enemy cruiser has opened fire on us. We can't hold out against them. Requesting reinforcements."

"_Iwo Jima_, assist the _Rachael_."

"We'll try Admiral, but we're a little busy over here."

"Admiral! Hirogen reinforcements are here! We're outnumbered almost three to one!"

At this, Maxwell leapt up. Though he was annoyed at being wrong, thinking that the Hirogen would attack the Starbase, he knew that the fleet had been caught in a globe maneuver. These maneuvers, when executed correctly, could prevent enemy ships from escaping by cutting off all of their escape routes. Maxwell headed for the turbolift, and Captain Peters followed him.

"Admiral, what are you doing?" Peters asked.

As they entered the turbolift, Maxwell turned to him, "How many crew members from your ship are fit for duty?"

"About one hundred and five Admiral. Why do you ask?"

"I ask because you and I are about to violate some orders."

The bridge of the _USS Highwind_ was dark for a moment, but suddenly six people materialized.

"Computer, authorization Maxwell Omega three eight five. Begin ship wide power up procedures."

The computer beeped an acknowledgement as the lights and panels suddenly flared on. The six officers ran to different stations. Maxwell sat down in the command chair as Peters took to the first officer's seat. The other crewers, all from the _Endeavor_, took their appropriate bridge stations. The deck plates began to rumble slightly as the engines prepared for space flight.

"Admiral, all crew from the _Endeavor_ is aboard," Peters said.

"Good. Maxwell to engineering."

"Engineering."

"How soon can you be ready for transwarp and combat?"

"Roughly ten minutes sir."

"Good," Maxwell said. "We're going to depart spacedock now."

The _Highwind_ slowly pulled out of the starbase's massive internal dock. Ignoring proper protocol, the impulse engines flared to life and the ship blasted to the outer edge of the system in a matter of minutes. The warp nacelles suddenly began to glow bright green, and with a silent bang, the ship dove forward and disappeared with a flash.

Commodore Burdick looked at his sensor displays and realized that this battle had gone from good to terrible in a matter of seconds. The Hirogen, now with their reinforcements, had surrounded the Federation fleet in a sort of loose globe. Try as they might, the Federation fleet was unable to break off and retreat.

"Commodore," Captain Dew said, "The Hirogen are concentrating an awful lot of firepower on _Voyager_."

Burdick checked his displays and confirmed that. "Why would they focus on _Voyager_? Half of our fleet is more powerful than that ship."

Dew looked up. "It's because they recognize the vessel." He paused. "They want revenge on its Captain."

Lieutenant Tuvok sounded grim. "Admiral, we've taken severe damage. I recommend we evacuate the vessel."

Admiral Janeway tapped panels, trying to figure out some way of surviving. "We need to get out of this globe! Someone clear a path, now!"

Suddenly, a voice was heard over the comm. "Allow me, Admiral."

The Starship _Highwind_ appeared directly outside the globe and unleashed a massive torpedo bombardment. Four Hirogen cruisers were caught by surprise and obliterated. The other ships began to break off to confront the new threat. As the globe began to dissipate, one Federation ship after another managed to escape from the globe and drive for deep space. The _Sovereign_ however got boxed in again as it escorted the _Voyager_ out of the globe. _Voyager _managed to pull out, limping with a little help from the _Steamrunner's_ tractor beam.

"_Sovereign_ to _Highwind_, we could use a little help here," Burdick's voice came over the comm.

"Stand by," Maxwell responded. The _Highwind_ unleashed another massive torpedo volley. The _Sovereign_ managed to escape through a hole in the globe, and it too began to retreat.

"Maxwell to all vessels. Rendezvous at Starbase 804. Go now!"

One by one the vessels of the fleet jumped to warp. _Voyager_ also jumped, having managed to get its warp engines back online somehow. The _Sovereign_ jumped out, and the finally the _Highwind_, still firing torpedoes from its aft launchers, warped out of the system as well, leaving behind a very angry Hirogen fleet.

"Fleet Admiral Maxwell, I trust you have a good reason for disobeying my direct orders?" Janeway said furiously as they stood in the conference room.

"Yes Admiral Janeway, namely to save your fleet from complete destruction."

"You took a single under-crewed starship to 'save' us? How thoughtful of you. What you really did was utterly stupid!"

"Permission to speak freely Admiral?" Maxwell asked.

"Oh, please do."

"I saved your life, the lives of your crew, and the lives of every other crew under my command. The methods I used, though unorthodox, did succeed. Had I not intervened, you would most likely be dead right now," Maxwell said calmly.

"The ends cannot justify the means Admiral. Besides, you hardly saved my ship. _Voyager_ will take months to repair. Therefore, I'm assuming command of the _Highwind_.

At this, Maxwell stood. "Admiral," he said quietly, "The _Highwind_ is under my command, not yours. I will not allow you to simply take command of it."

Janeway stood up as well. "You don't have a choice, I outrank you, _Fleet Admiral_."

"I'm well aware that you did not approve of my promotion, however the rank of Admiral gives me the same privileges as you, regardless of the official title. Therefore, I am NOT going to give you command of the _Highwind_," Maxwell said quietly.

Janeway glared. "Fleet Admiral Maxwell, are you aware of the penalties for disobeying a commanding officer?"

"Yes I am Admiral, however are you aware of the penalties for letting your personal animosity towards me interfere with your judgment?"

"Excuse me?" Janeway replied.

Maxwell handed her the padd he was holding. Maxwell spoke as she read it. "You are free to disagree with my promotion as much as you want. However, when you let that disagreement cloud your judgment as you have been, lives will be lost. That is something I will not allow to happen."

Janeway looked up at Maxwell as she set the padd down.

"Admiral Janeway, should you wish to remain here and provide advice and strategy to counter the Hirogen threat, you may remain. If you plan to continue to recklessly endanger my ships and people, then I'm going to have to ask you to leave," Maxwell said.

Janeway simply turned and left the room, leaving Maxwell alone in the conference room. Maxwell looked out the window at the internal spacedock, and smiled. As he stood there, he mumbled, "Well that settles that problem, but I think things are about to go from bad to worse."

Chapter 11 

"Admiral. The _Monitor_ has confirmed that report. Three more Hirogen cruisers have arrived in the outer system. They're holding back, just out of range of our primary sensor arrays." Burdick said to Maxwell.

Maxwell turned around from the screen he had been staring at. "What's the latest count?" he asked.

"We're up to about twenty ships sir."

Maxwell stood silently for a moment, and then turned back around towards the screen. On it was displayed a map of the system. "Do the Hirogen know about the gate yet?"

"We believe so sir," Burdick replied. "We can safely say that those probes we constantly encountered back when we were constructing the gate were sent by the Hirogen. I'm sure they've been keeping watch on our comings and goings as well."

"All right, so let's assume that the Hirogen will attack the gate next. Since they've already tried attacking the starbase and failed, chances are they'll go for our one connection to our people," Maxwell said.

"That's reasonable to assume sir. Do you want me to keep the _Monitor_ where it is for recon?"

"Yes, and dispatch the _Rachael_ as well. I want to know as soon as those Hirogen ships start moving."

"Aye sir." Burdick walked off and quickly went to work dispatching the appropriate orders.

"Oh, one more thing," Maxwell called. "Make sure they camouflage themselves."

"Bring us in ensign, nice and slow."

"Aye sir."

The _Monitor_ slowly lowered itself towards one of the small planets in the outer system. "How close are we?" Nolan asked.

"About three hundred kilometers sir," came the reply.

"All right. Set us down as gently as possible."

The _Monitor_ dropped towards the surface. Moments later, a pair of landing claws extended towards the ground. The _Monitor_ hit the surface with a jolt and settled in.

"Secure thruster exhaust. Inform engineering that they need to power down the warp core. We're going to make this ship look like a mountain on this planet."

The various crewmembers acknowledged. A few minutes after the order was given, the hum of the warp core ceased. The lights on the bridge dimmed and a few of the panels shut down.

"Order all crewmen to close their outer window shades. Deactivate external lighting. I want all systems inactive except for life support and the sensors. However, have engineering be ready to power up in a hurry. If that fleet starts moving, I want to be able to rejoin the fleet in time to meet them." Nolan sat down as the crew carried out his last set of orders. 'Now we wait,' he thought to himself.

"Detail, attention!" Lieutenant Alexander Munroe called out. The Hazard team stationed aboard the starbase snapped to attention.

"At ease," Maxwell declared. The crew dropped their attentive stances but remained alert as Maxwell addressed them. "As you know, we will undoubtedly be engaging the Hirogen in the near future. When this happens, we are going to have a special mission for you." Maxwell nodded to Munroe.

"We are going to infiltrate one of the enemy vessels. Our orders are to board the vessel, download its computer core, and retreat. We will try to use stealth as much as possible. Hopefully, due to the battle, they wont notice us," Munroe stated.

"Excuse me sir," one of the crewmen spoke up, "but isn't that a little naïve? Their sensors are as good as ours."

"Yes, however we are going to be boarding their vessel in a very interesting and unexpected way." Munroe replied.

"We have designed a pod that will be fired at an enemy vessel. The pod can carry six people and their gear. These pods, at a glance, appear to be large missiles. The Hirogen aren't aware that we don't use missiles, so they'll simply assume it is a weapon." Maxwell said.

"The pod will penetrate their shields, and slam into their hull. Once we hit, a small antimatter warhead in the tip will detonate an opening in the hull for us. Special plating will then extend to preserve the atmosphere inside the ship. Once that procedure is complete, we will open a forward hatch and board the vessel."

"Hopefully, given that they'll be distracted by the battle, they wont pay too much attention to the 'missile.' Once you're in, you are to proceed to the nearest terminal, and slice into their computer. You will download their records, and then activate your emergency transporter beacons so we can get a lock on you. You'll then be transported out." Maxwell paused for a moment. "The plan is to send in two teams, each to a different ship. This should increase our chance of success. Furthermore, you are authorized to use any force necessary to accomplish this mission. Understood?"

"Yes sir!" the Hazard team yelled.

Maxwell smiled. "Good. Gather your equipment. Alpha team, board the _Sovereign_. Beta team, you are to board the _Artemis_. Be on your respective ships in one hour. Dismissed."

"Lieutenant Unimatrix, report," Commodore Burdick said.

Unimatrix snapped to attention behind the tactical console of the _Sovereign_ and replied. "Sir, phaser arrays are operating at one hundred percent capacity. Primary and secondary capacitors are within accepted levels. Torpedo bays are stocked with four hundred photon torpedoes, and one hundred fifty quantum torpedoes. We also have a small number of tri-cobalt warheads."

"All right, good. I'm not going to specify which to load, that's up to your captain."

Unimatrix looked surprised. "You're not coming with us?"

Burdick grimaced. "No. Admiral Maxwell is going to command the fleet. He wants me to stay here and command the base and colony should the Hirogen attack here as well."

"Oh," Unimatrix said. "Well, don't worry sir, I'll give them a few torpedoes for you!"

Burdick laughed. "I know you will. Carry on Lieutenant." Burdick turned and headed for the turbolift, running into Captain Dew on the way. "Take good care of her my friend," Burdick said.

"I will," Dew replied. "Shouldn't you be going? I need to get this ship out in the next ten minutes." Burdick smiled and nodded, then headed for the turbolift. Dew watched him go. "Wish us luck," he said silently before turning his attention towards final preparations.

The massive bay doors on the starbase began to close as the _Endeavor_ pulled away. Burdick stood on the command deck of the starbase, watching the fleet pull away. He watched as the impulse engines on each ship ignited in turn, and the vessel blasted away towards the transwarp gate in the distance. "Good luck," Burdick whispered as he watched them go.

**Chapter 12**

"Red Alert. All hands to battle stations." yelled Captain Dew. His head quickly swiveled around the bridge as he watched the bridge crew rush to their appropriate stations. "Lieutenant Unimatrix," he said, looking at the tactical station, "ready quantum torpedoes."

"Aye sir," Unimatrix replied.

"_Sovereign_ to _Highwind_," Dew said.

"_Highwind_," Admiral Maxwell replied. "What's your status?"

"The _Sovereign_ is ready for combat sir. We await your orders."

"Stand by," Maxwell said. On the bridge of the _Highwind_, he turned towards his sensor officer. "Report Ensign."

"Admiral, the _Monitor_ reports it has detected roughly twenty Hirogen ships in the first wave. Sporadic sensor readings indicate that there may be a second wave inbound as well."

Maxwell was silent for a moment, looking around the bridge at all the officers there. He admired their efficiency as they prepared for battle. Inside, Maxwell felt terrible, not because of the battle that was about to occur, but because he knew that he had recalled his crew for a war. He had recalled them for a war in which many of them were unlikely to survive. Maxwell knew they were doing their duty, but the thought of losing any of his crew was not particularly appealing.

Maxwell tapped a panel next to his chair, and stood as the bossun's whistle sounded, activating a fleet-wide channel. "Maxwell to all vessels." Aboard every vessel in the fleet, all activity stopped as people halted to listen to the battle speech they knew was about to be given. Maxwell paused, then spoke again. "Roughly twenty Hirogen vessels are on a course that will take them to our only lifeline back to the Alpha Quadrant, the transwarp gate. You all know the importance of the gate. If it is destroyed, then the Hirogen will be able to eventually win via a war of attrition against us. This is something we cannot allow to happen. No matter what the risk, no matter what the cost to ourselves, we MUST hold this gate! Victory will result in our survival. Defeat will result in our destruction. Fight hard my friends, do what is necessary to achieve victory, for this is one fight we cannot afford to lose. Maxwell out."

In the blackness of space, the _Highwind_ and the _Sovereign_ hung silently. Behind them, blinking lights indicated the location of six torpedo turrets that had been brought online to defend the gate. The gate itself was behind everything, a massive object with a green vortex inside of it that represented the only lifeline back to the Federation.

In a blur of motion, the first wave of Hirogen ships appeared. The Hirogen fleet moved forward, heading towards the only obstacle they could detect: the two Federation starships.

Aboard the _Highwind_, Maxwell tapped a panel to open a channel to the Hirogen. "Hirogen vessels, stand down and leave the system immediately or we will open fire." The Hirogen responded by powering up their weapon systems. Maxwell watched them approach. Moments later he spoke three words into the comm. system. "Close the net."

As the Hirogen closed, they suddenly found themselves caught between two flanks. No longer detecting only two Federation starships, they found themselves caught in a globe maneuver, the same type they had used against Admiral Janeway.

The _Artemis_ and the _Adramalech_ had moved in behind the enemy fleet, cutting off their escape. The _Ticonderoga_ had warped in between the _Highwind_ and the _Sovereign_, while the _Iwo Jima_ and the _Steamrunner_ came in from above and below the enemy fleet. The _Vigilant_ and the _Trinity_ came in from port and starboard, resulting in the enemy fleet being surrounded by ships. The _Rachael _and the Monitor moved in behind the Galaxy class ships to provide sensor data and assist with the battle if necessary. Last to arrive was the _Endeavor_, which pulled in between the two Galaxies.

"Maxwell to the Hirogen fleet. This is your last chance. Stand down or be destroyed." The Hirogen responded by opening fire on the federation fleet. The _Endeavor_ took damage to its forward shields while the rest of the fleet withstoof the fire. "Maxwell to all vessels, fire at will!"

At these words, the _Highwind_, _Sovereign_, and _Ticonderoga_ opened fire with a massive torpedo bombardment. Three Hirogen ships near the front of their formation were destroyed in the first volley. The _Artemis_ and _Adramalech_ moved in from behind, targeting the heavier Hirogen ships. The _Trinity_ and _Vigilant_ maneuvered in between the enemy ships and just wreaked havoc.

"Maxwell to Rogart,"

"Rogart here,"

"Get out there and blast the shit out of those Hirogen!"

"With pleasure sir." The massive bay doors in the bow of the _Highwind_ opened, and wave after wave of tactical fighters began to spew out. The fighters formed up into their appropriate flight groups and began attacking the Hirogen fleet. Two enemy destroyers found themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time and were promptly destroyed.

Admiral Maxwell monitored the battle carefully. "Signal the _Artemis_ to deploy the Hazard team to enemy vessel beta four seven, and the _Sovereign_ to deploy them to gamma three one. Also, signal our fleet to not target those ships."

"Aye sir."

As the battle raged, an elongated cone was suddenly seen streaking away from the _Sovereign_. Moments later, the same thing happened as the _Artemis_ launched its team. The pods streaked towards their targets, blasting through the shields and slamming into the hull with a bang.

A single Hirogen crewman ran down the hallway towards the object that jutted through it. Suddenly he saw the front end of the object start to fall off. He stopped, and covered his head, sure that it was some sort of weapon. When no sound came from it, he opened his eyes and looked up, only to find himself staring down the barrel of a Federation assault rifle. As he was about to cry out, the officer holding the weapon brought the butt crashing into the Hirogen's head, knocking him unconscious.

"Nice work. Keep an eye on him though," Munroe said as he walked over to a computer terminal. He pulled out his tricorder and scanned the panel. He motioned to his computer specialist. "This terminal is as good as any. I want their logs and records downloaded as fast as you can do so."

The tech ran up to the panel and tapped it several times. He set a data core on it and began the download. Moments later, an alarm began to ring.

"Oh no," Munroe mumbled as the door as the end of the hallway burst open. "Defend yourselves!" he cried, firing on the first Hirogen who came through. His fellow team members did the same. "How soon?" he cried.

"Thirty seconds, Lieutenant," the tech yelled back.

Munroe fired again and again. Suddenly he heard another door hiss open. He turned around and fired at the new line of troops that were pouring through another entrance. One of the Hazard team was struck, and went flying.

"We're done sir!" the tech cried as he grabbed the datacore.

"Go, go, go!" Munroe cried. He watched as the tech activated the emergency beacon he had. Moments later he dematerialized with the datacore. One by one, the other members activated their beacons, only to dematerialize as well. Munroe waited until every other officer was out, then he dove into the hallway and activated the beacon on the downed officer's arm. Tapping his own, he watched the corpse of the fallen officer disappear, and he let out a sigh of relief only after he felt himself disappear, then reappear aboard the _Sovereign_.

"Admiral, Lieutenant Munroe reports success."

"Good," Maxwell said. He immediately turned his attention back to the battle. Though the Federation had the element of surprise on their side, things quickly began to turn away from them.

The Hirogen started coordinating their fire. The _Ticonderoga_, having pulled forward to go after a Hirogen ship, took a heavy beating. Its shields began to buckle, and as it tried to maneuver away, three Hirogen destroyers followed it, firing relentlessly. Maxwell stood up as he monitored the battle information. "Maxwell to _Iwo Jima_, the _Ticonderoga_ needs help! Assist them at once!"

"Admiral, there's a line of Hirogen cruisers between us and them. I can't get there in time," Captain Maharet replied grimly.

"Admiral," the comm officer said, "incoming message from the _Ticonderoga_."

The image of Captain Velkar appeared. "Admiral, we're in trouble."

"What's your status?" Maxwell asked quickly.

"Shields down, several hull breaches, and severe damage to the engineering section. I don't know how much longer I can hold her together."

"Stand by," Maxwell said. "Get us to their position, NOW!"

The _Highwind_ began to maneuver towards the _Ticonderoga_, however a Hirogen dreadnought blocked its path, as if sensing what Maxwell was trying to do. Maxwell, looking at his sensor displays, realized that they didn't have any options left.

"Maxwell to Velkar. Captain, abandon ship."

Aboard the bridge of the _Ticonderoga_, Velkar stood up. "Velkar to all hands, abandon ship." The lights on the bridge switched from flashing red to blue, signifying that an evacuation order was in effect. The officers abandoned their stations, moving towards the turbolifts. "Velkar to Hoffman, how long can you hold her together?"

"I can give you three minutes sir."

"Ok, do what you can then get the hell off this ship."

Velkar took a brief moment to look around what was left of his bridge. Bidding a silent farewell, he raced to the turbolift and headed for deck two. He stepped out of the turbolift and ran quickly to the nearest open escape pod hatch. He climbed in, strapped himself in, and then hit the launch button. With a jolt, the escape pod flew free. Looking out one of the small windows, Velkar felt a tear run down his eye as he watched a torpedo slam into the engineering section, causing the vessel he had served aboard for so long disintegrate in a spectacular explosion.

The Hirogen continued to coordinate their fire. The _Highwind_ began to take serious fire. Maxwell gripped his seat tightly as the ship rocked hard. Looking backwards to the master display, the shield display indicated that the shields were beginning to weaken. "Maxwell to all vessels, keep firing."

"Admiral," the voice of Captain Jacobe came over the speakers. "We're moving in to assist you."

"Negative," Maxwell said, "keep up the pressure. Don't worry about us."

"Admiral," the sensor officer said, "the Hirogen have entered weapons range of our torpedo turrets."

"Bring them online."

The turrets suddenly lit up and unleashed a massive bombardment, wrecking a few Hirogen ships. Other ships moved in and began focusing fire on the turrets. The Federation fleet responded by increasing the pressure on the Hirogen while they were distracted. For a brief moment, the tide of the battle swung into the Federation's favor. It did not last however.

"Admiral! Second wave of Hirogen ships has entered the area!"

Another wave of about twenty ships had suddenly appeared and opened fire. The _Steamrunner_ was caught flat-footed. Its antimatter pods breached and the ship blew apart. Another volley caught the _Vigilant_ by surprise, breaking it in half. A few escape pods were seen drifting away, but not many.

"Admiral, the _Steamrunner_ and the _Vigilant_ have been destroyed. The _Artemis_ reports it is taking heavy fire. Captain Newlands doesn't know how much longer he can hold out."

Maxwell grimaced. "We can't hold out like this. We need reinforcements!" Maxwell looked at the viewscreen just in time to see a large greenish beam strike a Hirogen cruiser and blast it into a fine powder. Maxwell was stunned for a moment, but then he checked his sensor displays. He quickly did a double take. His sensors now registered three Klingon Negh'var class dreadnoughts, as well as several Vor'cha and B'rels. Maxwell could hardly believe what he was seeing.

"Admiral, we're being hailed."

The image of a Klingon officer appeared. "Fighting a battle against superior enemy numbers is an excellent display of your courage Admiral Maxwell. Of course I'm sure you'd prefer to have some additional help?"

"Welcome to the party General Mat'agh. Glad you could make it," Maxwell replied with a smile.

"Thank you Admiral, but there isn't time for pleasantries now. Let's destroy these Hirogen p'taghs, then we can deal with the formalities." Mat'agh replied.

"I couldn't agree more General. Let's teach these Hirogen dogs how to fight! Maxwell out."

Chapter 13 

Mere seconds after the transmission had been terminated, the _Highwind_ was hit by a blast so hard that the entire bridge crew went flying. "Report!" Maxwell yelled after he managed to stand up.

"Direct hit Admiral. I don't know what kind of weapon we were hit by, but it took down our shields by forty percent," the tactical officer replied.

"Admiral!" the sensor officer yelled. "More of those torpedoes incoming!"

"ALL HANDS, BRACE FOR IMPACT!" Maxwell yelled, quickly grabbing a nearby banister.

Torpedo after torpedo hit the saucer section of the _Highwind_. The armor plating absorbed most of the fire, but one of the torpedoes blew threw the hull. On the bridge, the panels suddenly went dark, then lit up again.

"Direct hit to computer core three! The hull has been breached on decks seven, eight, nine, and ten."

"Admiral," the first officer said, "Even with the Klingons I don't think we can hold out much longer. There are too many enemy ships!"

"Admiral," the tactical officer yelled, "our shields have collapsed!"

"Deploy armor!" Maxwell replied.

On the outer hull, several protrusions began to glow. Suddenly, massive armor plates began to appear along the hull. They quickly grew to cover every portion of the ship.

"Armor is engaged Admiral. It's holding for now but I can't guarantee how long it'll last."

"All right. Damage control teams to decks seven through ten. I want those hull breaches sealed! Tactical, continue the torpedo bombardment." Maxwell turned towards the viewscreen in time to see one of the three Negh'var class ships suddenly burst into flames. "What the hell just happened?" Maxwell cried.

"Admiral! Some sort of Hirogen vessel is approaching. Its massive!"

"Put it on screen!" Everyone gasped as they saw the vessel approach. Its size dwarfed even the massive Negh'var. "Analysis! I want to know that ship's capabilities NOW!"

"Analyzing…sir, it carries the weaponry of four Hirogen dreadnoughts!"

"Admiral, sensors are detecting neutron radiation surges nearby."

"Neutron radiation? Does it match the signatures the Starbase detected earlier this week?"

"Yes sir."

"Computer, analyze radiation signatures. Cross check it with any other known occurrences."

"Processing," the computer replied. "Radiation signature matches the emissions of a standard cloaking device in combat conditions."

"Cloaking device? That could only mean…"

"Admiral! They're decloaking!"

In a place where space seemed empty, four massive figures suddenly materialized. Maxwell recognized them instantly as Romulan D'deridex Class Warbirds. Looking closely, Maxwell also spotted a smaller Shadow Class ship."

"Admiral, we're being hailed."

The image of a Romulan commander appeared on the screen. "Fleet Admiral Maxwell, I am Commander Taurris of the Romulan Star Empire. It was not our intention to reveal ourselves, however given the current situation we are offering our assistance," the Romulan officer said.

"I'm grateful for your offer. Concentrate your fire on that Hirogen super ship!"

The Romulans opened fire with a volley of plasma torpedoes. The Hirogen ship absorbed all of their fire without so much as flinching.

"Admiral, the Hirogen shields have been weakened but are still holding!"

"All vessels, concentrate fire on that Hirogen super ship NOW!"

The Federation fleet changed targets, firing phasers and launching torpedo after torpedo at the massive vessel. The Klingons followed suit. The Hirogen vessel somehow absorbed most of their fire, but finally its shields collapsed. Its armor didn't hold out very long, and soon afterwards the vessel blossomed in a brilliant explosion.

"Good work everyone," Maxwell said. He glanced at his displays and realized that the battle ahead was still going to be difficult.

Suddenly, a smaller Hirogen ship maneuvered into a position in front of a Hirogen dreadnought. A bright shockwave was suddenly released, blossoming out and hitting every ship in the area.

"Admiral, that shockwave affected our shields in some way, but I can't tell how. They all appear to still be functional."

"Oh they're definitely not still functional. The Hirogen wouldn't pull a stunt like that unless it actually accomplished something," Maxwell replied.

"Admiral, we're receiving a message from the _Trinity_."

"On screen."

The image of Captain Maharet appeared. Maxwell noticed that behind him, crewmen were running around with phasers in their hands. "Admiral!" Maharet cried. "We're being boarded!"

Lieutenant Neo glanced around the corner of the corridor. His well-trained eye caught a Hirogen attack squad moving forward along the corridor. Gripping the phaser rifle he was holding, he quickly set it to rapid-fire mode. Glancing around the corner again, he quickly counted five enemies. He paused for a brief moment, and then swung out into the corridor. The Hirogen barely had time to yell before they had all been taken out.

"Bah, pathetic," Neo said as he quickly headed for the nearest turbolift.

Aboard the bridge of the _Trinity_, things were looking grim. The Hirogen attackers had opened fire on the senior officers from both of the doors leading to deck one. The bridge crew had tilted chairs to form makeshift firing barricades, while Captain Maharet had locked out the computer and set the helm to auto-maneuver so that the _Trinity_ wouldn't be a sitting duck. The crewmen on the bridge exchanged fire with the Hirogen. The Hirogen took a few losses, but several of the bridge crew were struck. Maharet looked over towards one doorframe to fire, but noticed the entire Hirogen attack party suddenly buck and collapse. He suddenly knew what was happening, and he promptly turned to fire and distract the attack squad at the other door. Moments later, the Hirogen were all killed from behind. Through the smoke, Neo walked in.

"Captain, are you all right?" Neo said.

"Yes, but several of my crew aren't. Is there a clear path to sickbay?" Maharet asked.

"Yes sir, I cleared that deck."

"Bridge to sickbay, emergency teams are needed on the bridge."

"Acknowledged. Teams are on their way."

"Computer, enable all command functions, authorization Maharet gamma delta eight four." The panels all lit up again as the bridge crew took their stations. "Tactical, status of boarding parties?"

"Boarding parties have been contained on deck seven."

"Good. Let's keep them there." Maharet looked up at Neo. "What are you waiting for Lieutenant? I said let's keep them there."

Neo smiled. "Yes sir."

"Admiral, Captain Dew reports the _Sovereign_ has been boarded. Captain Hawking also reports the _Adramalech_ has been attacked by boarding parties."

Maxwell looked up from the panel he was working at. "That's only the start, they'll begin to board other ships soon as well."

At that moment, security alarms began to sound. "Admiral! Boarding parties detected on decks twelve, eight, four, and one."

"Security Alert, level one!" Maxwell cried. "Arm yourselves!"

The bridge crew immediately ran to the weapon lockers on the bridge. Tactical officers pulled out phaser rifles while the junior officers grabbed hand phasers. Admiral Maxwell tapped a button on his command chair and a hidden panel slid open to reveal a new Type III compression rifle. He pulled it out right as he heard an explosion and saw the door to the conference room explode inwards.

A hail of fire opened up towards the door, while the Hirogen began to fire inside. Two crewmen were hit, while the tactical forces on the bridge took out three Hirogen attackers. Maxwell aimed carefully and fired, nailing a fourth Hirogen hunter. The Hirogen immediately returned fire. Maxwell was hit in the shoulder, falling backwards with a cry of pain. Using as much of his strength as he could, he continued to aim and fire. Another Hirogen hunting party appeared, opening fire from the door to Maxwell's ready room.

"Maxwell to security, emergency reinforcements needed on the bridge!"

The bridge crew continued to fire at the Hirogen. Suddenly there was an explosion near one of the doors. The attacking party there collapsed and was still. A security squad shoved their way in and maneuvered towards the other door. Throwing grenades once they were in position, the other attacking party was safely eliminated.

Maxwell hauled himself up and managed to sit in his command chair as a team of medics materialized on the bridge. The medics began to attend to the wounded, and one ran up to scan Maxwell's shoulder. "Report!" Maxwell yelled as he suppressed the pain from his shoulder.

"Boarding parties have been isolated on deck five. Munroe reports that he has all access points to that deck secured," came the reply.

"Are any of our crewmembers on that deck?" Maxwell asked.

"Negative sir, only Hirogen."

"Very well. Seal off all access points to that deck and initiate decompression cycle."

The tactical officer paused for a moment, then carried out the order. The Hirogen, thinking they had captured the deck, never saw it coming as they were all blown out into space when the external doors in cargo bay two were opened to vacuum. Maxwell closed his eyes while the medic worked on his shoulder, somewhat regretting what he had just done, but knowing that it had been necessary.

Aboard the _USS Artemis_, Captain Newlands watched out the viewscreen as he saw the cargo doors on the _Highwind_ open and a large number of Hirogen fly out into space. "Hah!" Newlands yelled. "That will teach them to conform!" He turned towards his tactical officer. "How many more enemy ships are there?"

"Only one sir."

"Good, open fire on it, all weapons."

Aboard the Romulan warbird _Silence's Cry,_ Captain Pandaman watched as the _Artemis_ began its bombardment of the remaining Hirogen ship. "Hmm, a bold move. Perhaps we should assist them."

The Hirogen dreadnought, which had devoted its shields towards surviving the torpedo bombardment from the _Artemis_ was caught by eight plasma torpedoes. Its reactor breached and the ship exploded.

Captain Newlands watched the vessel explode, then checked his sensors. No more Hirogen vessels were detected nearby.

"Captain," the sensor officer said, "The _Highwind_ and _Trinity_ report the enemy boarding parties have been eliminated. The _Adramalech_ reports that it's still under attack but the boarding parties are contained."

"Then victory is ours!" Newlands said with satisfaction. "In this portion of the battle anyway. Open a channel to the _Highwind._" The image of Admiral Maxwell appeared. "Admiral, are you all right?" Newlands asked.

"Minor burn. What's your status?"

"The _Artemis_ is fine. Admiral, I believe the Hirogen are going to attack again soon. I suggest we withdraw and get into a defensive formation around the transwarp gate."

"I agree. All vessels fall back and reform around the gate."

The combined fleet moved back and formed up in front of the gate. The Federation ships took central positions, with the Klingons and Romulans on either side. Maxwell sat on the bridge of the _Highwind_ waiting for the attack that was undoubtedly about to happen.

"Admiral!" the tactical officer cried. "Word from Starbase 804! The colony is under attack!"

Maxwell thought for a moment. He knew this was just a feint, but he also knew that he needed to send reinforcements. "Signal the _Adramalech _and _Endeavor_ to defend the colony. Request the Klingons to send a Negh'var and the Romulans to send a Warbird to help." The appropriate ships left the formation and quickly warped off. Maxwell watched them go. "Why do I have the feeling that things are about to go straight to hell?"

Things did indeed go straight to hell. A massive spread of torpedoes appeared, blasting a warbird and three b'rels into fine powder. The _Artemis_ took a torpedo to its starboard nacelle. The nacelle began to flicker as the ship drifted out of formation.

"Admiral! The Hirogen!"

Maxwell looked at the viewscreen in horror. Two more of those Hirogen super ships had appeared and were unleashing a massive bombardment. Maxwell watched in horror as the super ships disabled half the fleet in a matter of seconds. The Hirogen unleashed another bombardment. Maxwell sensed what was coming, despite the armor protection.

"All hands brace for impact!"

The torpedoes blasted straight through the armor plating around the port nacelle. The nacelle ruptured, blowing apart the engine and venting plasma into space. Everyone on the bridge was once again hurled across the room. Maxwell managed to haul himself up to reveal a massive gash in his forehead that was dripping blood. "Report!" Maxwell yelled.

"Admiral, half the fleet has been disabled or destroyed."

"Does anyone have any weapons left?" Maxwell cried.

"Negative sir."

"Well then we'll just have to improvise. Helm, prepare for ramming speed!"

"Admiral! Something is decloaking!"

Out in space, a massive vessel appeared in front of the fleet. The vessel dwarfed even the _Artemis _in size. Maxwell looked at the ship and he felt his jaw drop open. "My God, it's the _Darkhawk!_"

Chapter 14 

Maxwell gazed out the viewscreen in awe at the massive ship that had suddenly appeared. He recalled his early years in command, where one would often hear rumors of a massive ship called the _Darkhawk_ that served a highly secretive branch of Starfleet Intelligence. Others had said that the vessel was just something captains made up to scare the younger flag officers. Now, as he looked out at the vessel, he realized that the rumors had been true.

"Admiral, we're being hailed."

"Put it on screen."

The image of a man sitting in a command chair appeared. Maxwell squinted at the viewscreen in an attempt to make out the figure sitting there. The lights aboard the _Darkhawk_ had been turned down to the point that it looked very sinister. Maxwell stood up as the man began to speak in a voice that made Maxwell cringe.

"Greetings Admiral Maxwell. My name is Angel."

"Greetings as well, but can we save the pleasantries for later? We're a little busy here," Maxwell said.

"You need not worry about the Hirogen, Admiral. We'll take care of them."

Out in space, the _Darkhawk_ suddenly unleashed a volley of torpedoes. The turquoise colored torpedoes screamed forward and impacted one of the Hirogen super ships, blowing it to pieces. Another volley was unleashed, hitting the second ship. Though the ship somehow survived the volley, its engines were wrecked and it was sent on a collision course with the Serris System's sun.

"Now, where were we?" Angel asked calmly.

"We were discussing who you were and why you were here," Maxwell replied, still gazing at his sensor displays.

"We have been monitoring Federation activities here in the Delta Quadrant. Given your current situation, it was decided that our intervention would be in the best interest of our organization," Angel said.

"What organization is this?" Maxwell asked.

"That does not concern you. What matters now is that you must return to the Starbase and begin repairs. You have an important mission ahead and your ships will need to be in really good shape if you have any desire to succeed."

'A mission?' Maxwell thought to himself. 'What is he talking about?' "What about the gate? We can't just leave it defenseless!" Maxwell said.

"My vessel will defend the gate while you conduct repairs. Now, hurry along and get to work. Angel out."

As the image of Angel disappeared, Maxwell sat down as he wondered what this mission could be. "Maxwell to all vessels, return to Starbase 804 immediately for repairs."

The fleet acknowledged and began to pull out. The _Sovereign_ moved into position to tow the _Artemis_ back to base since its engines were still offline. As the _Highwind_ began to move, the sensor officer called out. "Admiral, I'm detecting life signs in the debris."

Maxwell stood up. "On screen."

The image of a battered Type-six shuttlepod appeared. It had numerous blast marks and what looked like several hull breaches. "I'm detecting two life signs aboard the pod sir. One of them is really faint," the sensor officer said.

"Transporter room, beam the survivors directly to sickbay."

"Acknowledged."

"Navigation, set a course for the Starbase as soon as the transport is complete."

"Yes sir."

"I'll be in sickbay." Maxwell stood up and quickly ran to the turbolift. Rather, he ran straight into the turbolift's non-operational doors. After a few moments of dizziness, Maxwell recovered and headed for the nearest Jeffries tube, mumbling about how he was going to kill whoever disabled the turbolifts. He quickly opened the hatch, and began the process of tediously climbing down three decks to where sickbay was located.

Upon entering sickbay, Maxwell was confronted by a nurse demanding to treat his injuries. Maxwell ignored her, looking around and finally spotting his chief medical officer near the surgical suite. Maxwell began to walk towards it before he noticed about a half dozen other people working at the table. Figuring something serious must be going on, Maxwell acquiesced and sat down on one of the medical beds, allowing the nurse to treat his numerous burns and cuts. After treatment, Maxwell just sat and waited.

Finally, the group in the surgical suite disbanded. The chief medical officer, Doctor Kim, walked over to him.

"Doctor, what's the status of the two survivors?" Maxwell asked quickly.

"One of them was in fair condition and we were able to patch him up easily. The other however…" She trailed off and turned towards the surgical suite. Maxwell stood up and walked over to it, standing next to it and looking down at the figure lying there. The face of Captain Jacobe looked back up at him.

"I'm sorry…I couldn't…be of much help…Admiral," he wheezed.

"You did all you could my friend. Now stay quiet and rest, we'll get you all patched up," Maxwell said.

"I can't Admiral…I was…lucky to have survived…this long. I saw my crew…I saw them all die…in front of me…I don't know…how I survived." Jacobe coughed heavily, then he struggled to lift up his hand. Maxwell reached out and grasped it firmly. "I must…go now…Admiral. I must…join…my crew…Remember…the saying…a captain…always…goes down…with his ship. Goodbye…Admiral…" His voice trailed off, and his eyes closed. Maxwell felt his hand go limp. Maxwell sat with his head bowed, and a tear dropped onto the surgical bed.

"He did his duty Admiral," a voice said behind him.

Maxwell lifted his head and turned slightly to see Captain Velkar behind him.

"He saved me sir," Velkar said. "When the _Ticonderoga_ was lost, he transported me aboard the _Steamrunner_. When the Hirogen blasted his ship, we ran for the shuttlebay. As we ran, a bulkhead collapsed. He shoved me out of the way and took the hit. I managed to drag him to the pod where I tried to stabilize him with the emergency medkit. It was too late though, he had too many internal injuries." They both stood still for a moment. "He did his duty Admiral," Velkar said.

Maxwell finally stood up. "I know."

Twelve hours later, every surviving ship had been moored within Starbase 804 for repairs. Admiral Maxwell and Commodore Burdick departed in a small shuttlepod for an inspection of all the vessels docked there. The _Highwind_ had several massive holes in its saucer, and a completely wrecked port warp nacelle. The _Artemis_ was in the middle of running warp drive tests, and Maxwell saw that the starboard nacelle was still flickering, meaning its engines still needed fixing. Most of the other vessels had a fair amount of damage, but they weren't in terrible shape. Maxwell noticed that, ironically, the _Endeavor_, the smallest ship there, had almost no damage at all.

Maxwell spoke to Burdick as the shuttle began to head back to the docking port. "I want all repair crews working double shifts until the fleet is back up and running."

"Why so fast?" Burdick asked. "With the _Darkhawk_ here we don't really need to worry about defending ourselves."

"It's time to get off the defensive Burdick. The Hirogen have done nothing but attack us constantly. It's time we strike back." Maxwell paused as he gazed out the pod's viewport. "As soon as the fleet is ready, we'll show the Hirogen the true might of the Federation and its allies." He paused again. "It's time to end this war."

Chapter 15 

"Alpha squadron, initiate maneuvering sequence delta seven."

The flight group acknowledged, and Commander Rogart began to pull a tight turn in his tactical fighter. The craft responded, turning tightly as the rest of the squadron moved into a diamond formation.

"Commander, the target is ahead. Distance, seven thousand kilometers."

"Acknowledged Alpha three. All units, open fire on my mark. Three…two…one…mark!"

The fighters opened fire with their pulse cannons. The cannons were set to low power for the simulation, and the buoy that was the 'target' registered several consecutive hits. The computer console beeped indicating that the target had been destroyed.

"Good work everyone. That's all for our practice today. Everyone, head back to the Starbase." The vessels pulled up and headed for the massive docking bay doors of the Starbase. "Docking control, this is tactical fighter Alpha One requesting permission to enter the docking bay."

"Roger Alpha One. Alpha squadron is cleared to enter docking bay and land in fighter hanger beta."

Rogart frowned. The dock masters always had a habit of forgetting where the fighters were launched from. "Docking control, requesting permission to land directly aboard the _USS Highwind_."

"Negative, _Highwind_ is preparing for warp drive testing. No vessels may land in its docking bay until testing is complete. Report to fighter hanger beta for the time being. Starbase 804 out."

Rogart acknowledged and cut the transmission. He led the squadron towards the massive doors that had just opened. As his fighter slid through the doorframe, Rogart looked around at all the ships docked there. The first thing he took notice of was the _Highwind_. He noticed that its nacelles were lit, which was unusual for a vessel that was to remain docked. As he was watching, its nacelles flashed, and suddenly he felt his ship jostle around. Looking out with horror, he watched as the port nacelle overload, blowing out the bluish grille lining the outer side of it.

He quickly regained control of his fighter, and then, after checking the status of the rest of the squadron, headed for the fighter bay. As he prepared for landing, he noticed a group of emergency craft heading for the vessel. He quickly tapped his controls. "Rogart to _Highwind_, you guys all right over there?"

Admiral Maxwell's voice came back. "That's the second time the nacelle has blown itself out. We're having trouble isolating the problem. I'm starting to suspect one of the plasma ducts is blocked and thus causing the overload, but we've checked them repeatedly and found no problem."

"Hmm," Rogart replied, "that's an engineering problem, and I don't know much about that."

"That's all right, we'll figure it out eventually. How are the maneuvers coming?"

"If there was such a thing as perfect, I'd say we were there," Rogart replied, grinning.

"Let's not get too cocky," Maxwell replied laughing. "Just make sure you perform this well when we go into actual combat again."

Rogart smiled. "Yes sir, Rogart out."

"Well, third time's the charm," Maxwell mumbled to himself as he sat down in preparation for the next warp drive test. Repairs after the second test had taken about nine hours, but now they hoped they were ready. "Maxwell to engineering, you all set down there?"

"Yes sir," the chief engineer replied. "We've cleared out every plasma duct and EPS conduit again, so everything should work correctly. If you could, start out at warp one, then slowly increase up to warp factor four."

"Acknowledged," Maxwell said. "Helm, initiate dry warp firing and set speed to warp one."

The helmsman nodded, and then tapped his panel. The deck plates began to rumble as the ship went to warp while staying in the same place. The helmsman called out every interval, until finally the vessel reached warp four.

"Good job everyone. Helm, cut power to the engines. Engineering, what's your status?" Maxwell asked.

"Everything is fine here sir. Looks like we're good to go."

"All right. Secure from dry warp firings and get everything in order. I want a full engine diagnostic done immediately. I don't want our engines blowing out during combat."

"Yes sir. "

Maxwell reached over and tapped a panel, looking at the status of the repairs to the other starship

"What the hell is the problem?" Captain Newlands said furiously. "You told me you'd have those impulse engines back online two hours ago!"

Newlands was busy arguing with the engineering staff over the repairs they were supposed to be performing to the _Artemis_. After taking a hit from the Hirogen, the _Artemis'_ engines had been wrecked. Newlands knew that the fleet needed to be back up as soon as possible, so he had grown angry after his engineering staff had continuously pushed back the estimated time of completion of the repairs.

"Captain, replacing an impulse engine is no simple task. It takes a lot of time to reconnect the entire assembly to the power system and to make sure it wont burn itself out." the chief engineer said.

"You've been saying that for the last day! You've already had the new engine systems installed, and you've had over twelve hours to get them integrated! I'm not an expert in engineering, but I KNOW it doesn't take over twelve hours to reconfigure our systems for the new engines!" The engineers just tilted their heads forward. They knew Newlands was right, but they didn't want to admit it. Newlands simply sighed. "Listen, I want those engines online within the next six hours. If they're not, I'm going to have to see about getting a new engineering staff. Do I make myself clear?" The engineers nodded and Newlands silently walked out of engineering. Quickly walking to the turbolift, he stood there impatiently when he heard a voice behind him.

"You are certainly a motivational speaker," the voice said.

Newlands turned around to see Commodore Burdick standing there. "Commodore! What brings you to the _Artemis_?"

"Admiral Maxwell and I have been going ship to ship, checking on the status of repairs and seeing if there is anyway way we can help."

Newlands smirked. "So, you saw my little exchange with the engineers?"

"Yes. You could've handled that a little more diplomatically."

"Bah, they're being slow and you know it. Those Hirogen could attack us again and we'd have to sit in here because we can't get our engines working!"

Burdick was silent as they boarded the turbolift that had finally arrived. "Well, if they don't have the engines running in six hours, let me know and I'll get some of the Starbase engineering staff down here."

"All right, good," Newlands said with satisfaction. "Commodore, do you think we can win this fight?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact I do," Burdick said promptly. "We have a plan that'll bring the Hirogen to their knees. The Hirogen have underestimated us far too many times. Soon they will understand their folly."

Newlands and Burdick stepped out of the turbolift towards the airlock that connected to the station. "Well, I'm looking forward to dealing with them!" Newlands said. Burdick simply smiled as they departed the ship.

"Gentlemen," Maxwell said to the two silent figures standing in the conference room with him, "I can not order you to accept this mission."

"Admiral," one of them spoke, "We are willing to do whatever is necessary to help you end this war."

Maxwell smiled as he looked back and forth between his two covert operatives. "Very well. You understand what you must do?"

"Yes sir. Infiltrate the base, gather as much data as we can, and retreat," Dougall said.

"Good. Proceed to sickbay for surgery. Lieutenant Dougall, you will depart in seven hours. Lieutenant Coy, you depart in eleven hours. You are to avoid contact until you each complete your mission. Understood?"

"Yes sir."

"Good. You are dismissed." The two operatives left the conference room as Maxwell sat, praying that they are successful…

"Admiral," Commodore Burdick said, "Reinforcements have arrived from Starfleet. It's somewhat meager, but it'll help. They sent a Steamrunner class and an Excelsior class. The Excelsior is a Lakota refit."

"Good, that'll help," Maxwell said.

"Also, Starfleet Operations has informed me that we have permission to rename the Excelsior class ship the _USS Ticonderoga_-_A_."

"That'll make Captain Velkar happy. See to it. Also, do we have a Captain for the new Steamrunner?"

"Yes sir. A man named James Anderson arrived with the convoy. He has been captaining various ships for about eight years, and he originally graduated top of his class at the academy."

"Good," Maxwell said, "Give him command of that Steamrunner. What's the vessel's name?"

"The _USS Supernova_," Burdick replied.

"Very well. Give him command of the _Supernova_. Now, I want all vessels to be rearmed starting immediately. Then, order all captains to meet in the conference room in one hour. It's time to explain to them exactly how we are going to end this war," Maxwell declared.

Chapter 16 

Lieutenant Coy glanced around the corner cautiously. He didn't see any Hirogen in the hallway, which he looked upon with suspicion. He began to walk quickly and stealthily down the hallway. As he neared the door to one of the cargo bays, he suddenly felt himself being jerked backwards. As he struggled he felt a cold point of metal touch the side of his head.

"Hirogen Scum! You won't live to tell anyone about us!" a voice said quietly.

Coy paused only for a second. "I'm not Hirogen."

He felt the attacker stiffen, and then he released his grip and holstered his weapon. Coy straightened up and turned around to face him. "Don't you EVER scare me like that again Gary!" he said laughing slightly.

Lieutenant Dougall laughed in reply. "Sorry about that, I didn't recognize you Curzon."

"Jesus, I was ready to turn around and snap your neck!" Coy replied.

"Well, you're still alive, so stop complaining. How's your mission proceeding?"

"I'm working on it, I managed to listen in on a few briefings, but I haven't found what we're looking for yet. How about yours?"

"I'm almost done with the scans. I should be finished as soon as you are done with your eavesdropping. Where did you dock your ship?"

Coy grimaced. "The Hirogen impounded the vessel because it had a damaged throttle assembly. Can your shuttle hold two people?"

Dougall frowned. "It'll be a tight squeeze, but yes. Mine is docked seven decks down in one of the smaller cargo bays. I managed to convince the Hirogen authorities that I wanted my vessel stored down there so I can deal with some engine problems I was having."

"They weren't suspicious at all?" Coy asked.

"Not really. They seemed more annoyed than anything."

"All right. I'm going to complete my rounds and then meet you down there," Coy said.

"All right, I'll see you soon."

With that, the two parted ways and went off to complete their respective missions.

Lieutenant Coy glanced around the corner into the hallway. He saw a single Hirogen standing there, looking impatient. Coy strolled out calmly and walked towards the cargo bay. The other Hirogen walked next to him after he passed.

"Mission complete?" Dougall asked.

"Yes, yours?" Coy asked with a sigh of relief. He hasn't been sure whether that Hirogen had been Dougall or someone else.

"Mine is complete as well. Let's get to the ship and get out of here. I left a few of the charges in random decks to distract them during our escape, so we should be able to get out relatively cleanly," Dougall said.

Coy nodded and walked. As soon as they entered the cargo bay, Coy mumbled to Dougall, "Why do I have a disturbing feeling that we're about to be ambushed?"

"Halt, Federation Scum!"

Coy and Dougall turned around in time to see a full squad of Hirogen enter through the cargo bay doors. They raised their weapons and aimed at the two officers.

"Get down!" Dougall yelled. He shoved Curzon out of the way as the Hirogen opened fire. The two federation officers pulled out weapons and returned fire as they attempted to maneuver towards their shuttle. "Curzon, get to the ship! Get her ready for flight!" Dougall pulled out another phaser and fired, attempting to distract the Hirogen while Lieutenant Coy ran into the ship and began hitting controls. He was halfway through the preflight when he heard a yell. Looking out the view port, he saw Dougall on the ground, clutching his right leg.

"I knew it," Coy mumbled. He tapped several controls, and the rear hatch sealed. A few more taps and he heard a hum. Looking behind him, he saw Dougall materialize on the emergency transporter pad.

"Go…" Dougall gasped. Coy slammed his hand down on the controls and the shuttle lifted off. He pointed the nose of the ship at the cargo bay doors, ignoring the fire coming from the remaining Hirogen hunters. Tapping the weapons panel, he launched the only photon torpedo they carried. The bay doors exploded outwards, blowing the shuttle, and the remaining Hirogen out into space. "Input code...Omega one four eight…" Dougall said before he went unconscious. Coy complied, and suddenly the lower portion of the Hirogen Starbase they had just escaped from exploded.

Coy acted quickly, maneuvering as a nearby Hirogen cruiser began to fire at the shuttle. Coy glanced out the view port one last time as the shuttle jumped to warp.

"Sickbay reports Lieutenant Dougall is expected to make a full recovery," Burdick said as he entered the conference room.

"Good, we'll need them again very soon," Maxwell replied. He was standing next to the mysterious Angel, who stood in the shadows, looking very ominous. "Don't go anywhere Commodore," Maxwell said as Burdick turned to leave. "It's time to finalize our attack plans. Mr. Angel, here is the plan I have developed. I would appreciate any advice you could give me."

Angel nodded silently as Maxwell tapped a control pad. A holographic image of a sector of space appeared. The sector contained what looked like a Hirogen Starbase. "My plan consists of about four steps. The first step is we send the _Monitor_ into this sector, which from the data gathered by our Hazard team raid and Lieutenant Dougall, contains the Hirogen headquarters for this sector. Now, the _Monitor_ will simply do a fly-by and get as much reconnaissance data as it can. As soon as it has completed its scans, it will jump to warp and head for this system." Maxwell tapped the controls and a second sector appeared next to original one. "This is a system we have code named System Epsilon. Our attack fleet, as well as those of the Klingons and Romulans, will be standing by here. As soon as the _Monitor_ arrived, we will conduct micro warp jumps and blast a section of the Hirogen sensor network, allowing us to get in relatively undetected.

"Yes, but as soon as the _Monitor_ escapes from the sector the Hirogen will expect a larger attack and reinforce their base accordingly," Angel replied.

"You are quite right, however that brings us to step two." Maxwell paused. "As soon as the sensor net is penetrated, our fleets will divide into attack groups and conduct hit and fade attacks against nearby systems. The Hirogen will dispatch reinforcements to our various targets, thus decreasing the total number of vessels they can use to defend their headquarters."

Maxwell paused, waiting for any comments, but Angel simply remained silent. Maxwell took a deep breath. "That brings us to step three. The _USS Rachael_ has undergone extensive refitting. We have removed all non-essential systems and replaced them with the best sensors we have available. The _Rachael_ is going to park itself outside of the sector where the headquarters are located and conduct continuous scans. As soon as it detects the Hirogen fleet moving to reinforce its outer systems, it will send out a signal. Upon receiving that signal, the fleet will reform at the _Rachael's_ position and then initiate the full attack.

"The Hirogen will reinforce their headquarters as soon as it comes under attack," Angel said.

"Which is why we're going to have to strike quickly. Lieutenants Dougall and Coy will leave in two hours to infiltrate the headquarters. They will then attempt to plant explosives on the base's weapon arrays. When we attack, the explosives will be detonated, disabling the base's weapons. The fleet will then concentrate fire against the base. Only our attack fighters will attack the Hirogen starships nearby. As soon as the base's shields are down, the _Highwind_ will launch a volley of Tri-cobalt torpedoes. Those should destroy the station, and then we will mop up any remaining Hirogen ships, all before the reinforcements arrive."

"Hmm…"Angel said quietly.

"Destroying their headquarters should accomplish two things. The first is that it will cripple their ability to conduct operations in this area of space. Most importantly however, it will show that they underestimated us. We will then begin diplomatic negotiations to end the hostilities."

"Your plan sounds good, but whether it actually works, we'll have to see. Now, be aware, that the _Darkhawk_ will not be participating in this mission," Angel said quietly.

"We need the _Darkhawk_! It'll make it much easier to accomplish this task!" Maxwell said quickly.

"This mission does not concern us. The only reason we intervened earlier is because the destruction of the transwarp gate would have affected us. This attack does not and will not affect us, thus it is none of our concern. However, the _Darkhawk_ will remain here to defend the transwarp gate in case the Hirogen launch a retaliatory strike. Now, if you'll excuse me." With a quick nod, Angel tapped his uniform and suddenly dematerialized.

Maxwell sat for a moment, then stood up. Burdick followed him. "Inform all Captains that the mission briefing will be in one hour," Maxwell said.

"Aye sir," Burdick replied.

"Also, summon Captain Nolan to my ready room immediately."

Burdick nodded as the two entered the turbolift, heading for ops.

Captain Nolan walked into the ready room and stood by the desk at attention. "Captain, have a seat, I must explain your mission." Nolan sat, and Maxwell promptly explained what he was to do. "Any questions?"

"What if I'm outgunned when I arrive in the sector?" Nolan asked.

"Get as many scans as you can then retreat. Do not engage any enemy forces. Any other questions?"

"No sir."

The two stood up. "Good," Maxwell said. Get to your ship. You are to depart in exactly one hour."

"Aye sir."

An hour later, the _Monitor_ pulled out of the starbase's docking bay. Nolan stood, gazing at the viewscreen as the ship jumped to warp. Walking to his command chair, he tapped the ship wide com controls. "Nolan to all hands. As you know, this is going to be a very difficult mission, however it is imperative to our victory in this war. No matter what happens, we must succeed. Failure is not an option. The fate of Starfleet's presence in the delta quadrant rests on our shoulder. Nolan out."

As he sat down, he mumbled to himself, "the final battle for the quadrant has begun."

Chapter 17 

The conference room was crowded, which was quite surprising considering how huge it was. Every captain and first officer in the fleet, as well as those of the Klingon and Romulan fleets, were present. Commander Thames Norrowind looked around at everyone who was present.

The first person he noticed was captain Newlands. He was standing in a small circle with Captain Hedgecoff and Captain Maharet. They seemed to be involved in an argument over who's ship was the 'coolest.' It didn't sound like Newlands was making any progress either. He seemed to just be yelling 'shut up and conform!' at everyone nearby. Captain Velkar stood nearby, holding a discussion with Captain Hawking over Jacobe and how he had died heroically. Captains Peters and Kennedy stood over near the door, holding a conversation over their respective ships.

On the other side of the conference room, Captain Anderson was talking with Captain Alex Truman. Truman commanded a Nebula class vessel, the _USS Indefatigable_. The other federation captains were all sitting at the table, drinking beverages of some sort. Norrowind continued to scan the conference room until he took note of the Klingons. They were over in a side of the conference room, drinking bloodwine that General Mat'agh had somehow smuggled aboard the Starbase. Norrowind laughed to himself, knowing that some sort of fight among the Klingons would probably break out in five minutes.

Finally, Norrowind noticed the Romulans. They were off in a dark corner, holding some sort of discussion. Norrowind listened closely, and managed to make out that Taurris was simply ranting about great his Shadow Class vessel was. The other Romulan commanders were just glaring at him, apparently not listening to him.

Norrowind suddenly heard the doors his open. He looked up to see Commodore Burdick walk in. Stepping to the podium, he cleared his throat. "Everyone please move to your seats." The captains all moved to their respective seats and stood silently until Admiral Maxwell walked in. Everyone snapped to attention as he walked quickly to the podium.

"Be seated," Maxwell said as he shuffled around the padds he was carrying. He gestured to Burdick, who tapped the controls near his seat, activating the holographic display of Hirogen space. "We are preparing an attack against what we believe to be the Hirogen base of operations for this area of space. Now, the headquarters is big, heavily defended, and pretty much inaccessible due to a sensor network here." Maxwell used a laser pointer to highlight the sensor net. "They don't want us to even attempt an attack, however they're too late."

Maxwell paused for a moment. "I'm sure most of you have noticed that Captain Nolan is not present. That is because the _Monitor_ is already en route to the headquarters. It is preparing to conduct a fly by to gather as much intelligence about the headquarters as it can. In addition, it will be deploying special forces to the headquarters."

Captain Hedgecoff raised his hand. "Why are we deploying special forces there sir?"

"The forces will attempt to sabotage the weapon arrays aboard the starbase. A starbase lacking weapons is an easy starbase to attack. Now, here are our specific plans of attack…"

Maxwell spoke for about thirty minutes as the captains and commanders present listened silently. "So that is our plan. Are there any questions?"

Captain Newlands raised his hand. "Will the _Darkhawk_ be involved in this attack?"

"No it will not," a voice came from the shadows. Everyone turned to see Angel standing there. "The _Darkhawk _will remain behind to protect the transwarp gate."

Newlands nodded. Maxwell looked around, and saw no other raised hands. "Very well then. You have your orders. Everyone to your ships, we will depart in exactly twenty minutes. Dismissed."

Everyone present stood up and began making their way towards the doors. Maxwell picked up the padds he had with him and began walking briskly towards the turbolift. Burdick and Captain Dew walked together, discussing the operational status of the _Sovereign_. The Romulans, rather than waste time walking, simply transported out of the conference room. Maxwell reached the turbolift, and along with several other captains, headed for the docking bay.

Standing aboard the bridge of the _Highwind_, Maxwell looked out the viewscreen at the other vessels docked within the starbase. After a brief moment, he tapped a button near his control panel. "Maxwell to all vessels, report in."

"_USS Iwo Jima_ is standing by."

"_Adramalech _standing by."

"_Trinity _standing by."

"_Artemis_ is good to go."

"_USS Shockwave_ is locked and loaded."

"_Sovereign_ ready to kick some Hirogen butt sir."

Maxwell smiled as he listened to the rest of the reports. Noting that all vessels were ready, he spoke again. "All vessels, begin departure sequence." The _Highwind_ fired its thrusters and slowly maneuvered out of the massive bay doors. Once in space, Maxwell monitored the rest of the vessels as they left the massive docking bay. "Maxwell to all vessels, set course for system Epsilon. Maximum warp. Initiate yellow alert upon arrival."

The captains acknowledged, and the Federation vessels jumped to warp, tunneling towards the system. The Klingons engaged their warp drives and followed suit and the Romulan fleet engaged their cloaks. As his vessel prepared for the jump, Captain Dew looked back at the planet and the colony. He smiled, thinking of how much he loved serving here, and how he hoped to live to see it again. The _Sovereign_ jumped to warp, leaving behind a single massive vessel defending the starbase.

Aboard the mighty _Darkhawk_, Angel spoke to himself. "It is somewhat saddening to know that most of those people will not live to see tomorrow," however he knew that their sacrifice would serve a greater purpose than even Admiral Maxwell thought.

In the light of the systems sun, the combined Federation, Klingon, and Romulan fleet stood by. Maxwell once again tapped the controls next to his command chair. "All right everyone. You know what to do. We will begin the operation in thirty seconds from my mark. We will jump to warp, disable the sensor network, and then conduct hit-and-run attacks against enemy targets." Maxwell paused and smiled. "Let's show the Hirogen exactly what happens when they initiate hostilities against us. Initiate countdown from thirty seconds…mark."

The comm channel was cut, as every vessel in the fleet raised shields and charged weapons. As the countdown reached zero, Maxwell watched as the vessels formed into small groups and jump to warp. Silently, he prayed they would all survive the early attacks, because he knew that he would need every one of them very soon…

Chapter 18 

The _Highwind_ remained motionless in space, silently waiting. The _Sovereign_ was nearby, moving in a sort of loose orbit around the third vessel present. The _Rachael_ was hovering motionless, its powerful sensors conducting continuous scans of the Hirogen headquarters. Admiral Maxwell sat in his command chair, watching the sensor reports from the _Rachael_.

"Admiral, the _Rachael_ reports two vessels are approaching."

"Which vessels?" Maxwell asked.

"The _Ticonderoga_ and the _Trinity_. Captain Maharet is hailing."

"On screen."

Maharet's face appeared on the viewscreen. "Our mission was successful Admiral. We managed to wreck a Hirogen outpost. As we were leaving, four Hirogen destroyers and a cruiser showed up."

"Good, any damage?"

"Negative sir."

"All right, form up and wait for the rest of the fleet."

As the image of Captain Maharet disappeared, the com officer spoke again. "Additional ships inbound sir, the _Indefatigable_ and the _Shockwave_. The _Shockwave_ is hailing."

The image of Captain Anderson appeared. "Mission complete Admiral. One Hirogen colony damaged."

"Good, any pursuit?"

"Yes sir. Two destroyers and a battleship arrived when we were halfway done. The _Indefatigable_ took some fire but is still fully operational."

"All right. Form up and stand by."

"Aye sir."

"Incoming hail Admiral," the comm officer said again. The image of a Romulan appeared.

"Admiral Maxwell, we have destroyed a Hirogen communications array in a nearby sector. A few destroyers tried to intervene but we destroyed them as well."

"Very good Admiral Taurris. Any damage to your vessels?"

"None, they were no match for us."

"Good, stand by."

"Admiral, the Klingons have arrived. General Mat'agh is hailing."

"We have destroyed a Hirogen shipyard. Three battleships appeared in an attempt to stop us, but we were too quick for them."

Maxwell nodded. "Any losses?"

"A single Bird of Prey."

Maxwell frowned, "very well, we're waiting for our remaining task forces, then we will initiate the main attack."

The fleet stood by for a few more minutes. Finally, the _Artemis _and the _Adramalech_ arrived, reporting success. The _Endeavor_ and the _Iwo Jima_ showed up moments later. With that, the fleet was ready.

So Admiral Maxwell stood, and gave the order that would set the final battle in motion. "All vessels, go." With a roar, the fleet jumped to warp almost simultaneously…

Curzon Coy ducked as a pulse blast flew by his head. Looking back, he saw a Hirogen security squad running madly down the hallway. Looking ahead again, he saw Gary Dougall sprinting towards a nearby door. He dove in, and Coy followed, hitting the lock button as he did so. It wouldn't stop the security team for long, but it would delay them.

"Quickly, we're almost at the shuttle!" Dougall yelled. The two of them sprinted across the floor to the shuttle that was parked there. They dove in and hit the hatch controls right as the security squad disintegrated the door. The two operatives jumped into their chairs, quickly running through the preflight. The Hirogen, instead of trying to break into the shuttle, settled into just firing at it.

"Their weapons aren't powerful enough to penetrate the armor," Coy said.

"Their hand weapons aren't, but that may be," Dougall replied.

A Hirogen had walked in with some mean looking bazooka type weapon. Coy looked on in silence as the hunter made ready to fire the weapon.

"They're too late," Dougall said quietly. He slammed his hand down on the main control panel, and the vessel lifted off. Moments later, a single torpedo launched itself at the outer doors to the cargo bay. With a scream, the doors caved outwards, and the shuttle as well as the Hirogen inside, were blown out of the bay. The two intelligence operatives worked furiously, dodging the fire coming from two Hirogen destroyers that were moving into attack position. They maneuvered carefully, but the shuttle began taking hits.

"Our shields are collapsing!" Coy yelled. Dougall simply glared out the viewscreen, attempting to continue his maneuvers. Coy tensed himself for the end, when suddenly he saw one of the destroyers explode. Looking closely out the window, he saw a squadron of attack fighters move into escort position.

"Omicron One to shuttle, looks like you guys could use a hand," the voice of Lieutenant Thompson came over the shuttle's com system.

"Indeed we could, and thanks," Coy replied.

"Acknowledged, set course bearing one four eight mark three one one." Dougall complied, setting the course, which turned out to be towards the _Highwind's_ docking bay. As soon as they were within the shielding of the massive ship, Omicron squadron broke off and began seeking out other targets.

Maxwell was sitting in his command chair when the two intelligence operatives emerged from the bridge turbolift. "Report," Maxwell said.

"Mission complete Admiral. Transmit code three four one to trigger the explosives," Coy said. Maxwell nodded at the comm officer, who then transmitted the code. The Hirogen station shuddered, and a massive plate of armor suddenly ruptured on its outer hull. Maxwell checked his sensor displays and saw that the weapons array of the station had been destroyed. "Maxwell to all vessels, the weapons are offline, commence bombardment."

The vessels complied, moving into range and opening fire on the massive station's shields. Torpedo after torpedo hit the shields, and numerous phaser blasts followed suit. Maxwell watched his displays as he saw the shields begin to weaken, when suddenly the sensor officer cried out.

"Admiral! The base has fired at us!"

Maxwell stood up. "Who was hit?"

The viewscreen flashed to a view of the _Adramalech_, which had a massive hole in its saucer section. Maxwell simply looked in horror as he saw the station open fire on the vessels around it.

Captain Newlands had the same look on his face as Admiral Maxwell. As he watched, he saw the _Indefatigable_ and the _Shockwave_ move in on an attack run. Too late, he knew what was about to happen. "Transporter rooms, get the crew off of those ships NOW!" Moments later, he saw the Hirogen starbase fire on the vessels, destroying both of them. "Transporter rooms, report."

"We got as much of the crew off as we could sir."

"All right. Let's keep up the fire on that base. Try to keep us inconspicuous so that they don't think we're a worthy target."

"Yes sir."

Captain Peters was aboard his ship when it took a hit from the base. He was literally thrown across the bridge until he met the tactical station. When he regained his senses, he saw the stars spinning wildly through the viewscreen. "Report!" he yelled before coughing up some blood.

"Direct hit from the station sir! Hull breaches on all decks below five! Main systems are down!"

Peters coughed some more, "inform…Admiral…Maxwell…" he gasped before collapsing into unconsciousness.

Maxwell gripped his chair tightly as the _Highwind_ began to absorb serious fire. "Damage report!" he yelled when the bombardment ceased.

"Shields have dropped to eighteen percent sir."

"What's the status of the rest of the fleet?"

"The _Indefatigable_ and _Shockwave_ have been destroyed. Captain Newlands informs me that he managed to save the crews. _Endeavor_ reports severe damage."

"Admiral!" another officer yelled. "The _Sovereign_!"

Maxwell watched as the massive ship took a torpedo bombardment. Its shields were penetrated and the secondary hull took severe damage. The Hirogen then stopped their bombardment and began to target other ships nearby. "All vessels, we must destroy the starbase! Fire at will and use your own tactics!" Maxwell cried out.

The Romulan fleet was moving into attack position when the starbase fired at them. One warbird was caught in the crossfire and destroyed. The other ships immediately began to fan out, attempting to avoid the enemy fire. The Klingons simply ignored the enemy fire and bombarded the starbase. They lost several attack cruisers when the starbase fired at them, but the Klingons were unrelenting. Even more serious fire began to be exchanged at this point. The Federation ships fired relentlessly, but the Hirogen retaliated. The _Adramalech_ was blown in half when a torpedo volley blasted through its 'neck.' Captain Hawking did not give up however. After ordering everyone in the stardrive section to work simply on stabilizing the warp core, he detached the saucer section and used it against the starbase. A nearby Klingon bird of prey moved in and thoughtfully towed the stardrive section out of the starbase's weapons range.

The _Endeavor_, having been crippled earlier, took another torpedo volley. A few escape pods managed to jettison before the torpedoes hit, but the vessel exploded in a brilliant fireball moments later. The Romulans lost another warbird during an exchange of fire. The Klingons were holding their own for the moment, but it was clear that they could only hold out for so long. It was at this point that Admiral Taurris made a critical decision.

Aboard the RNS _Silence's Cry_, Taurris watched the battle with anger seething within him. After having lost half his fleet, he decided to use a new experimental weapon that was being carried.

"How long will it take to bring the shield inversion device online?" Taurris asked his second in command.

"Not long sir," he replied.

"Admiral," another officer said quickly, "Command ordered us not to reveal that weapon to any of our enemies."

"If we don't reveal it, we'll all be dead. We need to stop the Hirogen here and now if we are to further Romulan interests in this area of space. Bring the weapon online and target the station."

"Yes sir."

Approximately four minutes later, the chief engineer stepped on to the bridge. "The weapon is ready sir."

Taurris smiled. "Fire."

"Admiral, I'm detecting strange energy readings coming from the _Silence's Cry_." Maxwell looked up at the viewscreen in time to see a greenish beam shoot from the Shadow Class ship at the starbase. Moments later, the shields of both ships were visible, and it appeared that the _Silence's Cry_ was drawing power from the shields of the Hirogen starbase. "Admiral!" the sensor officer cried. "The stations shields are beginning to collapse!" Moments later, the protective bubble around the starbase faded out, leaving nothing but the base itself. "Maxwell to all ships. Now's our chance. Lock weapons on to the station's reactor core and fire!"

Every remaining vessel in the fleet let loose every weapon they had. The _Artemis_ and _Trinity_ let loose with phasers, while the _Highwind_ began a bombardment with tri-cobalt torpedoes designed specifically to destroy enemy stations. Other federation ships let loose with photon and quantum torpedoes, not holding anything back. The Romulans fired their plasma torpedoes, while the Klingons used specialized heavy disruptors.

Yet somehow the station's armor withstood all that pounding. Maxwell just stared in shock. Nothing they had seemed to be penetrating the armor. "Admiral," the sensor officer said, "The armor around the station's core is some sort of neutronium alloy. It's definitely weakening, but it will take more firepower than our entire fleet has to break through!" Maxwell sat there, thinking of his options. There was one method he knew of for penetrating neutronium armor. That involved hitting the armor with a large amount of antimatter, somewhere in the vicinity of fifty kilotons. That was about as much as a Galaxy Class ship carried, but there was no way to contain that much in a torpedo.

While Maxwell pondered, the Hirogen continued their bombardment. Captain Newlands was commanding his ship well, along with Captain Anderson who had taken over at tactical since the tactical officer of the _Artemis_ had been injured. Newlands turned to yell something about firing more torpedoes when everyone on the bridge was thrown out of their chairs. "Report!" Newlands cried.

"Direct hit to the starboard nacelle! The hull has been penetrated and we're leaking drive plasma. We need to deactivate the warp core or it will go critical!"

"Not again," Newlands mumbled to himself. "Very well, shut down the core and get us out of their weapons range." He hauled himself back into his chair, silently brooding at being taken out of the fight.

Captain Maharet was aboard the bridge of the _Trinity_ when it took a severe hit. The ship began spinning madly, having lost maneuvering thrusters and impulse engines. Luckily the inertial dampers were still online, or everyone would be pinned against a wall. "Engine status?" Maharet yelled.

Commander Norrowind ran to the engineering console, looked at it briefly, and then yelled back. "They blasted our primary engine manifolds sir! It's going to take some serious refitting to get them online again!"

Maharet closed his eyes and silently prayed that the Prophets would somehow grant them victory.

By now, every ship had either been severely damaged or destroyed. Every captain had given up hope, except for the Klingons who were still relentlessly pounding the base. That is, every captain had given up hope except for one.

Aboard the second most powerful Federation ship present, Captain Dew sat in the command chair. He watched ship after ship, person after person, fall to the Hirogen. He knew that this carnage would continue, and thousands more people would lose their lives. He had seen the sensor reports regarding the neutronium armor, and he knew what must be done to give the Federation victory.

Dew tapped a button next to his chair, and a whistle sounded. "All hands, this is the captain. Abandon ship immediately." The alert lights went from red to blue, signaling the evacuation order. Commodore Burdick stood up and turned towards Dew, but was cut off before he could speak. "Don't argue with me Commodore, we need to get you off this ship." Burdick simply nodded and headed for the turbolift. Dew ran around, making sure everyone headed off the bridge. He appeared to follow him, but as soon as the turbolift doors closed, he turned around, ran, and sat down at the helm.

Admiral Maxwell watched as the _Sovereign_ jettisoned its escape pods. He checked his sensor displays, and realized that there was still a single life form aboard. "Hail the _Sovereign_," Maxwell said. The image of Captain Eddy Dew appeared on the screen. "Captain, what the hell do you think you're doing?" Maxwell asked quickly.

"I'm doing what I have been trained to do Admiral. I'm doing what is necessary to win this fight." He closed his eyes briefly, and then opened them again. When he spoke, his voice was quiet. "Admiral, may I ask a favor?"

"A favor?" Maxwell asked, surprised. "Can't it wait until we get back to the starbase?"

"Admiral, please tell my family that I love them, and that I will always cherish my time with them."

It was then that Maxwell realized what Dew planned. "Eddy no!" Eddy simply hit the panel, and the transmission was cut. The viewscreen went back to a view of the _Sovereign_.

"Transporters, get him off of that ship now!"

"We can't sir, transporters are down."

Maxwell watched the viewscreen as the _Sovereign_ flew forward.

Captain Eddy Dew, commander of the _USS Sovereign_, closed his eyes. When he opened them again, the look of anger he had would have made even a Klingon back away. He opened a channel to everyone who had the capability of hearing it.

"Hirogen scum, this is for everyone who died because of you: the Captains, the officers, the crewmen, the civilians, and everyone else. It's time for you to be paid in full for what you have done. Let this be a lesson to anyone who dares strike against the Federation. From hell's heart, I stab at thee!"

With that, he slammed his fist onto the helm controls. The _Sovereign's_ impulse engines ignited and the ship flew forward. Every captain in the fleet watched as the massive ship flew into the Hirogen starbase.

The ship broke apart on impact in a tremendous explosion. The eighty kilotons of antimatter the ship contained detonated, ripping through the armor plating and into the reactor core of the station. Sensors aboard the _Highwind_ indicated that the sudden energy spike had triggered a reactor overload. Maxwell stood up. "Helm, get us away from the station! Tactical, lock tractor beams on any remaining ships nearby and pull them to safety." The _Highwind_ turned about, firing up its own engines as numerous small explosions began to appear on the Hirogen starbase. Grabbing the _Trinity_ and the saucer of the _Adramalech_, the ships accelerated and then jumped to warp as the massive starbase went nova. The other ships nearby jumped to warp as well, escaping before the massive shockwave and debris cloud hit them. As his ship tunneled through warp, Maxwell sat in his chair, silently grieving over the loss of Captain Dew

Chapter 19 

With a silent bang, the _Highwind_ dropped out of warp on the outer edge of the Serris system. The _Trinity_ and half of the _Adramalech_ hung nearby, still in the grip of the _Highwind's _tractor beam. Moments later, the stardrive section of the _Adramalech_ dropped out of warp, followed by the _Artemis_. The Ticonderoga and the _Iwo Jima_ were the last ships to arrive.

Maxwell looked around the bridge at his crew, noting how fatigued they were. The pitched battle they had all participated in had worked everyone to the point of exhaustion. A medical team had arrived on the bridge, attending to the minor wounds of everyone present. Maxwell himself had some cuts and bruises from the times he and everyone else had flown across the bridge during the battle.

"Admiral," the sensor officer said in a tired voice, "Starbase 804 has dispatched tugs to help bring in all the ships. They should be here within ten minutes."

"All right, inform all ships to hold position here. Engineering may deactivate our tractor beams at their leisure."

"Aye sir," the sensor officer said. Maxwell then turned towards the first officer.

"Commander, inform all captains that I want to meet with them in ten minutes in my ready room."

"Yes sir."

Ten minutes later, every remaining commander stood or sat in Maxwell's spacious ready room. Maxwell himself stood, letting Captain Peters use his seat since he was seriously wounded.

"Gentlemen," Maxwell said, "Words cannot convey how grateful I am for how you have all acted during this conflict. You have all functioned as one of the finest groups of officers I have ever seen." The officers all nodded and a few of them smiled. "Now, the bad news is that this war may not be over yet. I am hoping that the Hirogen will dispatch a diplomatic envoy to open negotiations, but if they don't then we may still have a tough fight ahead of us."

"Admiral," Captain Newlands said, "Given the damage our fleet took during this attack, I don't think we can keep up a war. Not unless we get another fleet to help out."

"I'm aware of that," Maxwell replied grimly.

"Admiral," Captain Hawking said, "Do you have any estimate for how long it will take for repairs?"

"Not at the moment no, but I can only assume it will be months before all of our ships are back in full working order again. I can assure you however that I will request a shipment of parts as well as extra crews to help speed things along as best we can." The Captains all nodded in agreement. "I have also sent a request for a diplomatic team to be dispatched immediately so that if the Hirogen do contact us, we'll be ready to start negotiations immediately," Maxwell said. He was about to say something else when the comm system beeped.

"Admiral, a Hirogen destroyer has just dropped out of warp. It's approaching our position."

"Are its weapons powered?" Maxwell asked quickly.

"Negative sir. Its shields are down too."

"All right, I'll be right there." Maxwell nodded to the other Captains nearby who followed him onto the bridge. Maxwell then walked over to his command chair and stood there.

"We're being hailed, Admiral."

"On screen."

The image of a Hirogen officer appeared. Unlike most Hirogen, he did not have the facemask that was common for them. Maxwell spoke first. "I am Admiral Maxwell of the United Federation of Planets."

"Admiral Maxwell, I am Teran, the Alpha of this area of space."

Maxwell nodded. "Is there something we can do for you?"

Teran nodded. "We wish to negotiate a cessation of hostilities between our two governments. We also wish to begin negotiations for a long term non-aggression treaty."

There was immediately a sigh of relief from everyone on the bridge of the _Highwind_. Maxwell felt weak from relief, but maintained his composure. "We wish to open negotiations as well. If you wish, you may beam aboard my vessel to negotiate the cease-fire. We have summoned a full ambassador and diplomatic team to negotiate a long term alliance."

"You want me to board your ship alone?" Teran asked, sounding a bit angry.

"No, we will allow you to bring a party with you not exceeding six people," Maxwell replied.

"Very well," Teran said, "We will transport over in exactly thirty minutes." The transmission ended. Immediately, everyone on the bridge broke out into cheering.

"All right, all right, there will be time for celebration later," Maxwell said. "Have our tugs arrived yet?"

"Yes sir. They're moving into position to rig for towing."

"Good. Inform them to begin towing every ship whose impulse engines are offline. The _Highwind_ will remain here until the negotiations are is completed."

"Aye sir."

Maxwell turned to the captains who were still present. "All of you are to return to your ships and head back to the starbase. Dock when you arrive, but I want everyone to get a full twenty four hours of rest before we begin on repairs. Everyone is exhausted and they need some rest. Commodore Burdick, you are to remain here and assist me with the negotiations."

Burdick nodded and the Captains began to file away towards the turbolifts. Maxwell nodded at Burdick, who began speaking to the other bridge officers, ordering preparations for the diplomatic conference. Maxwell walked towards the turbolift himself to go clean himself off before the meeting.

Thirty minutes later, Admiral Maxwell, Commodore Burdick, and a security squad stood in transporter room one, waiting for the Hirogen party to arrive. With a hum, four figures shimmered into existence on the transporter pad. As soon as they materialized, they stepped forward. "Admiral Maxwell, " the lead Hirogen said, "I am Teran."

Maxwell extended his hand. Teran reached out and they shook hands firmly. "Normally we'd offer you a tour however my ship is in pieces," Maxwell said with somewhat of a smile on his face, "please follow me, we will go to the conference room."

The group walked quickly to the room where they all sat down. Maxwell spoke first. "I believe a cease fire is in the best interests of both our peoples right now."

"Yes," Teran replied. "You humans have proved to be a much more resilient species than we originally anticipated. We have both suffered extensive casualties and severe damage to our equipment."

"Indeed. Well, since we're in agreement, let's make this simple on ourselves. No Federation vessel will fire on any Hirogen ship, station, or planet. Furthermore, we will not enter any system with a visible Hirogen presence without requesting permission," Maxwell said.

Teran nodded. "No Hirogen vessel will fire on a Federation ship without provocation. We will also respect the boundaries of the system you have colonized."

Maxwell agreed. "When full diplomatic negotiations get underway, perhaps you will provide us with a map of your space, so we know where not to enter without requesting permission."

"Perhaps. I will have to discuss that with my superiors though."

"Very well," Maxwell stood up, extending a hand, "then the war between the United Federation of Planets and the Hirogen is over."

Teran reached out and they shook hands firmly. "Yes it is."

An hour later, the _Highwind_ arrived at the starbase. The massive station was a welcome sight to Maxwell and his crew. "Blue alert. All stations secure for docking." The bridge became bathed in a blue glow as the officers began preparing for docking. Outside, the massive bay doors opened to receive the ship.

"_USS Highwind_ you are cleared for docking at mooring alpha three. Welcome back."

The ship slowly glided into the massive bay. There, every other ship in the fleet had been docked. The _Highwind_ slid in slowly, cutting its engines as tractor beams tugged it into place at the appropriate mooring. An extendable pipeline moved out, linking up to one of the airlocks on the ship. Other tubes were brought by tugs. These tubes were designed to take over all functions of the ship, letting the ship shut down everything to conduct repairs.

Upon docking, Maxwell stood up and hit the ship wide com controls. "All hands, this is Admiral Maxwell. I would like to commend you all on your fine work during this ordeal. Rest assured that Starfleet will be well informed of everything you have done. Now, I know how exhausted everyone is, I know I am. Therefore, everyone take the next twenty four hours off. Get some rest, a hot shower, and a good meal. We will begin fleet wide repairs at twelve hundred hours tomorrow. That is all."

Everyone on the bridge began to disperse, and a few of the officers thanked Maxwell for the rest period. Maxwell himself stood for a moment, then headed for the turbolift. The turbolift descended, and Maxwell stepped out. He stepped into the airlock and walked down the hallway to the starbase. He strolled for a little bit until he finally reached his quarters. Removing his uniform, Maxwell simply walked to the bed and collapsed, falling asleep almost instantly.

The next day at noon, the starbase was a bustle of activity. Everyone, now rested, was working towards repairs. Several freighters had arrived with spare parts and engineering teams, adding to the speed at which people were working. The diplomatic team had arrived, and was off working towards a non-aggression pact with the Hirogen. Maxwell found himself as busy as he was during the war, only instead of blasting Hirogen cruisers, he found himself arguing, cajoling, and negotiating with his officers over engineering teams and spare parts. Every other officer was busy as well. Commodore Burdick was supervising the arrival and the departure of all cargo ships. Each Captain was supervising the repairs of his own ship, and on occasion, getting into shouting matches with other captains.

During one of his spare moments, Maxwell walked into the conference room. Stepping to the window, he looked into the docking bay, watching all of the activity. Smiling, he though of how proud he was of everyone serving under his command. After his brief rest, he left the conference room and headed for the docking bay to help with repairs.

Chapter 20 

The officers stood in rows, equally distant from each other. Each one had a different look on his or her face. One had a frown, one was crying however they all had one thing in common, they all looked towards the center of the room.

There sat two torpedo casings. Each one had a Federation flag over it. Instead of the warhead, each one contained something else inside. One torpedo contained the remains of Captain Jacobe, while the other symbolized the body of Captain Eddy Dew.

Admiral Maxwell walked into the room. He signaled to the crewman standing near the door. The crewman lifted a whistle to his face and sounded it. Every officer on deck snapped to attention, facing the portion of the room where Maxwell was now standing.

Maxwell lifted his head and spoke. "We are gathered here to pay tribute to our honored dead. These officers died in the line of duty, defending the Federation against our enemies. Captain Jacobe was a fine officer, who sacrificed his life so that a fellow officer could survive. Eddy Dew gave his life for everyone here, so that they could survive this war. They will be missed, but they will never be forgotten."

Maxwell paused, then turned towards the two torpedo tubes and the window looking out into space. "Company, left-face!" In near perfect synchronization, the officers turned to face the window. The detail of officers assigned to the honor guard walked forward. They took their positions on each side of the tubes.

The torpedoes began to move forward, towards the open tubes. The honor guards held the flags, carefully lifting them from the torpedo casings as they entered the tubes. The hatches on the tubes sealed quietly. Maxwell walked forward, stepping to the firing controls. After pausing a moment, Maxwell tapped the 'fire' button.

In space, the two torpedoes streaked off into the distance, while torpedoes on the upper level of the starbase fired a twenty-one torpedo salute to honor the fallen officers. Maxwell stood perfectly still until his keen eyes could no longer see the torpedes. Turning about, he waited until the bagpipe player was done. "Gentlemen, you are dismissed."

The officers began to disperse. Commodore Burdick began to walk alongside Maxwell as they headed for the command deck. "It was a nice ceremony," Burdick said.

Maxwell simply nodded.

"Repairs are continuing as planned. We should be receiving another supply of spare parts soon. Also, Starfleet contacted us earlier. They wish to speak to you concerning reassignment of ships to this area of space."

"All right, I'll get in contact with them later today. I promised Captain Maharet I'd give him a hand with the _Trinity's _engines."

"Yes sir," Burdick said quietly.

"Was there something else?" Maxwell asked, sensing the tone of his voice.

"Yes sir," Burdick hesitated. "I received word from Starfleet. I've been offered a promotion."

"That's great news!" Maxwell said.

"Well, they also said that I am to be reassigned."

Maxwell stopped walking. "To where?"

"The Alpha Quadrant, they want me to command one of our outposts near Romulan space."

"I see," Maxwell said. "Well, what do you plan to do?"

Burdick visibly prepared himself. "I believe that I am going to accept the promotion sir."

Maxwell nodded. "When will you depart?"

"Probably not for another few weeks. I asked to stay and help you get back on your feet. It would be rude of me to simply run off."

Maxwell nodded. "That's very gracious of you. Well, congratulations on your upcoming promotion old friend. I'm sure you'll make a fine Admiral."

"I'd like to think so sir," Burdick said with a smile.

"Well then, I'm going to make sure I put you to good use while you're still under my command. Let's get over to the _Trinity_."

"Yes sir."

Epilogue 

"_USS Galaxy_ departing in fifteen minutes," the computer called. Outside the docking tube leading to the vessel stood Admiral Maxwell and Commodore Burdick.

"Admiral, it was an honor to serve with you," Burdick said.

"The honor was mine old friend," Maxwell replied as they shook hands. "Make sure you let me know how your next posting is. Hopefully it will be as fun and action packed as this one was."

Burdick smiled, "I certainly hope so sir. Well, I really must be going, wouldn't want to miss the only 'shuttle' back to the Alpha Quadrant." The two men smiled at each other, and then Burdick picked up his bags and strolled down the docking tube. Maxwell walked to a nearby window and stood there, watching the last stragglers run aboard. Moments later, the docking tube retracted and the vessel began slowly moving away. Maxwell then strolled quickly to a nearby turbolift and headed for ops. Once there, he walked to the window overlooking the docking bay.

The _Galaxy_ backed out of the docking bay and fired its impulse engines. Minutes later it entered the transwarp conduit, disappearing into the distance. Maxwell watched it go, and then turned his attention back to his usual mundane duties.

"Admiral?" a crewman called, "Starfleet reports that reinforcements and extra supplies will arrive in three days. In addition, several new colony vessels are to arrive within two weeks. Starfleet has indicated they want scans done to look for new planets."

Maxwell sighed, "All right, inform them that I will begin looking into that immediately." Another crewman handed Maxwell a padd, which he began to read.

"Information about your new second in command sir," the crewman said.

"Rear Admiral Mike Carnie," he mumbled. "I'll have to read up on his record."

"Admiral? Word from the _Monitor_," another crewman called. "Captain Nolan indicates they found some strange wreckage in a nearby system," he paused, "incoming transmission from the _Monitor_ sir."

Captain Nolan's face appeared. "Admiral," he said.

"Yes Captain, what is it?"

"The wreckage we found sir, we just completed our initial scans of it," Nolan said with a worried voice.

"Well? Can you identify it?" Maxwell asked.

"Yes sir. It is Borg."

_To be continued…_


End file.
